Photograph
by coolchick207
Summary: After an argument with Don over his lack of impulsiveness, Charlie makes a decision to prove him wrong. And so starts the journey of a lifetime, as documented through a series of photographs. CA
1. At the beginning with you

**Photograph**

**Summary:** After an argument with Don over his lack of impulsiveness, Charlie makes a decision to prove him wrong. And so starts the journey of a lifetime, as documented through a series of photographs. C/A

**Rating:** PG.

**A/N:** Hey there. Well, being the poor, lonely and overworked University student that I am, I decided that I needed something sweet and fluffy to keep me going through the distinctly unsweet and unfluffy life I am living: and so here I am, writing an aimless, sweet, fluffy story when I should probably be studying. Now, I can't promise you weekly updates. Hell, I can't even promise updates, period, seeing as how dependent most everything in my life is on how many assignments I have due in any given week and how much they're weighted, but I can promise that, at some stage in the next year, this story will be finished. Also, please note how very little I know about how airports work. Well, I hope you enjoy my story, as we follow Charlie and Amita on the adventure of a lifetime.

**Chapter One**: _At the beginning with you_

_We were strangers on a crazy adventure  
Never dreaming how our dreams would come true  
Now here we stand, unafraid of the future   
At the beginning with you_

-'_At the Beginning With You'_ by Donna Lewis and Richard Marx

Alan yawned, walking down the stairs blearily, still wrapping his dressing gown around himself. It had been a long, dreary few months for the older man since his younger son had left. Dragging himself into the kitchen, he absently started to make himself a coffee, rubbing the back of his neck as he puttered around the kitchen, recalling the day when all this started, just 2 months earlier. Charlie had come home, flushed and smirking, with an apprehensive looking Don just behind him.

"Whatever he does is not my fault," Don had said, backing out of the house quickly as Alan turned a questioning stare on him.

Just a few hours later, Charlie had come bounding down the stairs, flushed and triumphant, and clutching two slips of paper in his hand.

"Hey Dad, I'm going to take off for a while, OK?" he had said, grinning happily as he flopped onto the couch next to his father. Alan looked at him from the corner of his eye, before sighing and turning to him.

"Define 'a while'," he remembered saying, trying to hide his apprehension at the look on his son's face.

"I don't know," Charlie had replied joyfully, shrugging.

"Pardon?"

"I don't know, maybe a month, maybe two. I'm going to ask Amita to travel the world with me," he recalled Charlie's exultant declaration.

"You are?" Alan had choked out, trying to hide his shock unsuccessfully. "Uh, where are you going?"

"Wherever the wind takes us. But first, Mexico," he said, waving the slips of paper in the air. "Two first class tickets to Mexico City, leaving at 2 o'clock tomorrow afternoon."

"Isn't this a little…?"

"Impulsive?" Charlie had offered with a slightly evil grin. "Yes, I do believe that it is! So, can you look after the house while I'm gone?"

"Of course I can, but…" he had stammered,

"Thanks, dad. Got to go pack! Oh, and don't tell Don please. I'll let him know my own way. Thanks dad, see you tomorrow!"

He chuckled dryly as he remembered how he had sat on the couch for most of the rest of the night, trying to comprehend what had just happened. And, true to his word, Charlie had called a cab at 10.30 the next morning, hugged his father and threw his bag and laptop in the trunk, before taking off. The more cynical half of Alan was expecting Charlie to return by the end of the day, having been told 'no' or had some sense talked into him by Amita, but, instead, got a phone call that evening from the pair, obviously enjoying themselves as they hit the town in Mexico City. Alan shook his head and moved to the lounge room with his mug, rubbing his eyes as he looked around. The house seemed dull, deflated somehow, without the sound of Charlie typing or scratching equations or talking at a million miles an hour about something Alan couldn't even follow, yet alone understand.

Still sipping his coffee, he furrowed his brow at the sound of a car pulling up in the driveway and moved across the room to pull back the curtains slightly, startling at the scene that greeted him as Charlie and Amita got out from the cab, laughing hard and with lei's around their necks. The cabbie helped get out their many bags, joking with them about something, before shaking Charlie's hand. Grinning, Alan moved quickly to the door to throw it open to greet them.

"Dad!" Charlie yelled, hugging him tightly as Amita waved enthusiastically to the cab driver as he backed out.

"You should have told me you were coming home! I would have – I don't know, gotten dressed or something," Alan rebuked, hugging his son. Charlie laughed again, and, pulling back to examine him, Alan was pleased to note the healthy glow his son had attained over the previous few months. "And you!" Alan said, turning to Amita with open arms, who, much to his surprise, stepped into his embrace easily, grinning.

"Hey, Mr Eppes," she said, hugging him almost as tightly as his son had. Pulling back, he shook his head in disbelief.

"Amita, please call me Alan," he pleaded, looking over the pair of them again, before bursting out with: "You two look fantastic! Come on in, and we'll have breakfast," he offered, moving to help them with their bags.

"Ah! Be careful with that one, dad!" Charlie said, moving forward as Alan reached for a large, black case. Hearing the urgency in his sons tone, he dropped his hand quickly. "I'd better take it, actually," the young professor said with a sheepish grin.

"Why? What's in there?" Alan asked, intrigued by what could have triggered such a response.

"You'll see," Amita said mysteriously, picking up several bags and moving into the house. Alan, picking up their suitcases, followed.

"How much did you take?" he asked, amazed by the sheer volume of their things, following Charlie's shout of laughter through to the lounge room.

"A bag, a suitcase and two laptops!" he said, placing the black container carefully on the ground, and grinning at Amita, who had her lei caught up in one of the bags, before moving to her side and helping her untangle it.

"Why thankyou," she said coyly, using his lei to pull him into a brief kiss, much to Alan's shock.

"Come on, there's more stuff outside," Charlie said with a cheeky grin, swatting her behind as she turned, and laughing at the look of mock indigence that she threw over her shoulder. Alan shook his head and moved out with them to get in the last of their things, observing the pair as they interacted with each other, gently teasing and joking as they gathered their new belongings and moved back into the house.

"So what have you guys been up to since you've been gone?" Alan asked, leading them into the kitchen, where he immediately started preparing breakfast. Amita and Charlie exchanged a quick look, and Charlie moved to make coffee.

"Oh, this and that," he replied, winking at Amita. Without turning around, he held up a hand to silence the protest he knew was coming from his father. "We'll explain later, I promise."

"Want me to call everyone, amore?" Amita asked, getting out her mobile and raising it slightly.

"Yes please honey. It's going to take most of the day just to explain this once," he said lightly. Alan turned and surveyed the pair, his breath catching at the sheer happiness that shone from their forms as Charlie grabbed her free hand to plant a kiss on her palm before handing her a cup of coffee.

"OK, I'm going to make those calls. 10 o'clock sound good for you guys?" Amita asked casually, smiling tenderly at Charlie as she slipped off the chair.

"Sounds great, hon," Charlie assured her as she moved to go outside to make the calls. "Oh, which suitcase has our regular clothes in it?" he called after her.

"Um…. The green one? Maybe? Don't quote me on that," she warned, moving out the door and dialling a number. Charlie smiled at her as she started talking into it, laughing. Sighing, he got up and moved to the lounge room, popping open the green suitcase and flinching at the bright array of colours that greeted him. Flitting his gaze over them, he reached for the least colourful- a pale green t-shirt that declared _J'étais amoureux à Paris -_ and, grabbing a pair of jeans, moved to go upstairs, only to find his father standing between him and the staircase.

"You're not getting anything out of me until everyone else is here," he said with a grin, and was surprised when, instead of trying to get information, Alan merely stepped forward and embraced him again. Confused, he hugged him back.

"I'm so glad you've finally found that happiness doesn't have to be in numbers," Alan murmured into his son's hair, kissing his temple tenderly. Charlie smiled and blushed, though it was much harder to see than a few months before, due to his darker skin.

"Yeah, so am I. She does make me happy, dad," he confirmed, pulling back with a happy smile.

"I noticed," Alan said gently, ruffling his hair before grinning and saying: "To the shower with you!" Sighing, the older man marveled at the many changes that he had already seen in his son as he watched him stride away with a confidence in his step that he'd never before possessed.

"Alan?" Amita called a few minutes later, and he turned to face her, smiling. "Do you want me to check on breakfast?"

"Damn!" he said, racing through to the kitchen, grateful to find that the sausages were cooking nicely and that, in his earlier daze, he'd forgotten to turn on the fry pan. "Thanks, Amita, I guess I got caught up thinking."

"I wondered where Charlie got that from," Amita joked quietly, her dark eyes, normally lurking with something Alan couldn't quite name, completely calm and soft. "Would you like a hand?"

"No, thank you anyway," he smiled turning back to breakfast.

"In which case, would you mind if I went up and grabbed a quick shower after Charlie? It was a long flight," she said, laughter flickering across her expression.

"Of course not. Uh, the green suitcase was holiday clothes, so you know," he informed her as she left the room with a smile, making her poking her head back around.

"He's not wearing that awful shirt from Cairo, is he?" she asked, suddenly worried.

"No, I think it had something written on it in French," Alan assured her.

"Oh, the _amoureux_ shirt. That's all right then. Thanks, Alan. Oh, and Don, Meghan, Colby, David, Larry and a friend of mine are going to be here in about two hours, is that OK?" she called from the lounge room.

"Of course it is," he reassured her, as she ducked back through, smiling gratefully.

"I really am sorry to just show up like this with no warning, but we were going to head back to Italy for a few days until we saw that the flight was cancelled, so we just got on the first plane home. I guess we're so used to not calling when we leave for somewhere, it didn't even occur to us," she apologised. Alan left the fry pan for a few moments to walk over and grasp her by the shoulders.

"Do not apologise for bringing my son home happier than he's ever been, Amita," he said softly, smiling at her.

"Still, we should have called," she said, flushing with pleasure. "Anyway, I'm going to head upstairs. Thanks again, Alan." And with that, she walked out of the room, blushing furiously, to start up the stairs. Alan shook his head as he heard laughter drifting down from upstairs, smiling to himself as he revelled in the difference that having the pair home made to the house, which seemed to be getting brighter by the moment.

A few hours later found the three relaxing in the lounge room, and catching up on events in Alan's life while they had been gone. Amita was reclining into Charlie's side on the sofa, with her feet tucked under her and her hair tied up in a simple ponytail, as he drew patterns on the flat of her stomach with his hand. However, in the middle of Alan's description of his date with a woman who volunteered with him at the shelter, they heard a car pull up. Smiling, Alan got up to start making coffee for everyone, as the front door opened.

"Where's my baby brother?" Don called loudly.

"In the lounge room," Charlie yelled back, pressing a final kiss to the crown of Amita's head before getting up to greet Don, who wrapped him in a bear hug. Charlie laughed and returned the embrace, as David reached over to hug Amita.

"Whoa, buddy, you look good!" Don said approvingly, ruffling his much shorter hair. "The time away agreed with you!"

"That it did," David agreed, pulling away from Amita to shake Charlie's hand whilst Don embraced Amita. "With both of you," he reiterated, before going to help Alan with the coffee as he came into the room.

"What's with all the bags?" Don asked, gratefully accepting the offered cup of coffee from his father and sinking into the chair across from Charlie. Amita laughed and rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, you try travelling the world and see how much you accrue," she teased lightly, resuming her previous position and accepting her cup from David with a smile. "Seriously, you won't believe the sheer amount of _stuff _that resides in those bags." Don laughed, his eyes taking in the comfortable and intimate position his brother and Amita were in. David sat cross legged on the ground, leaving the spare chair for Alan.

"Anyone home?" Meghan called from the front door.

"Come in, Meghan," Alan called, smiling as Larry and Meghan arrived. Heaving a sigh, Charlie helped Amita to her feet and jumped to his to greet his friends.

"Charles, Amita! It is highly pleasant to see you two again, I was beginning to believe that you had ventured into a separate dimension," Larry grinned as Charlie pulled him into an embrace, whilst Amita and Meghan hugged.

"Well, we did go to Europe, which is close enough, trust me," Charlie grinned, winking at Amita, who laughed.

"Ok, Larry, you've hogged him long enough, let me get a hug," Meghan said, playfully jostling him out of the way to embrace Charlie, leaving Larry to kiss both of Amita's cheeks chivalrously.

"Hey whizkid!" Colby called from the doorway, as Charlie pulled away from Meghan. Grinning, he reached over to shake Colby's hand. "It's good to have you back. You too, Amita," Colby said with a genuine smile, leaning over to kiss her on the cheek, before pulling back to and opening his mouth to ask a question.

"Amita Ramajuan, I'm going to kick your pretty Indian arse!" a feminine shriek cut across him as a pink blur sped across the room, almost knocking Amita from her feet. Charlie laughed as Anna embraced her friend fiercely. "And yours too, for taking her away for so long," the young woman said, jabbing a finger at him before pulling him into a hug too. For a few moments, she stepped back and looked at the pair. "Oh, you two!" she burst out, pulling them into a group hug. Amita laughed happily, hugging her back.

"Hey, chica," she said quietly as Anna pulled back, wiping her eyes surreptitiously.

"Coffee, everyone?" Alan called, bringing through a fresh pot, along with milk and sugar. A murmur of affirmation rippled around the room as Charlie sat down, pulling Amita down onto his lap, where she quickly made herself comfortable, turning to kiss him lingeringly before reaching for her coffee.

"So what's been happening in your lives while we've been away?" Charlie asked, winding an arm around her waist to pull her close.

"In our lives? We're more interested in yours at the moment! You're the ones who have been travelling the world!" Don laughed, as Meghan sat next to Larry, placing a hand on his thigh.

"Yeah, but ours is going to take up most of the rest of the day, so we're asking now," Amita said with an impish grin.

"Well," David said, clearing his throat. "I got engaged."

"Oh my God – seriously? Congratulations!" Amita said with a wide grin, as Charlie gave David a thumbs up.

"That's fantastic, David," he grinned. "And I'll shake your hand at some point, I promise." David grinned tightly and looked away, obviously uncomfortable at the amount of attention being paid to his personal life.

"Yeah, well," he mumbled, taking a sip of his coffee.

"We'll have to have her around at some point for a barbeque," Amita said quietly, before looking around. "What else?"

"I moved in with my boyfriend," Meghan said innocently. Charlie choked on his coffee, his position not being terribly contusive to seeing where Meghan's hand lay.

"Oh?" he managed weakly, as Amita let a slow grin spread over her face as the pieces fell into place. Meghan had been emailing her with the fast progress of her relationship with the mystery man she referred to only as 'L', but the last Charlie had heard, Larry and Meghan had gone on one rather shocking date, with the night ending with Larry in hospital and Meghan having to fast talk her way out of being arrested.

"Yeah. Just this week, actually," she said, enjoying Charlie's expression and squeezing Larry's leg to let him know to play along with the game.

"That… that's really great, Meghan, really great," he forced a smile and hoped it looked genuine. Amita glared lightly at her friend, who winked in return. "So, uh, what about you, Larry?" Charlie asked, desperate to change the subject in case Larry was upset over Meghan's announcement.

"Well, other than Meghan moving in, nothing major, really," he said with a vague smile, squeezing his girlfriend's free hand.

"Oh thank God, that could have been severely uncomfortable," Charlie said, letting out a sigh of relief, as everyone in the room chuckled lightly. "That was evil, Meghan!"

"Thank you, thank you, I'm here until Thursday," Meghan said with a small grin.

"Ha ha," Charlie returned dryly. "Ok, news, people."

"Terry moved back to LA," Don announced calmly, draining what was left in his mug. Everyone in the room turned to look at him, gaping. "What?"

"Seriously?" Amita asked, with a small smile.

"Yep. Been assigned a team over here, and arrived yesterday," he informed them, avoiding everyone's eyes and smoothing his trousers in a nervous gesture that Charlie recognised from their childhood.

"Oh? Where is she now?" he asked, taking a sip from his coffee and somehow managing to keep his voice even.

"Sleeping off the jet lag," Don tried to deflect the question but, seeing the look in his brother's eye, added softly: "At my apartment."

"Ha! I knew it! I so win!" Charlie grinned, punching the air and grinning at Colby, who groaned and reached for his wallet.

"What the hell is this?" Don asked in shock, watching as Colby handed over several notes to his brother.

"I bet that Terry would be back and in your apartment within a year of her leaving, Colby had from 12 months on," Charlie grinned, before rolling his eyes at Don's look of righteous indignation. "Oh come on, you can't tell me that you aren't all waiting for us to reveal when we got together so you know who won your pool."

"Hey! That's…. When was that, again?" he asked sheepishly, finally seeing the humour in the situation.

"Nuh uh, not until later," Amita grinned. "OK, what about you, Colby?"

"Working, sleeping, eating on occasion, catching the bed guys, etcetera," Colby grinned wryly from his seat on the floor. "In other words, I got married to the job. That's basically it. I don't lead a particularly interesting existence."

"Anna?" Charlie asked, turning his attention to her.

"Nothing. Well, work, but mostly nothing," she said, pretending to mope. Amita plastered a look of sorrow on her face, reaching for her friend, who smiled in spite of herself and batted the hand away.

"Well, if we're all done, can we turn our attention to these two please?" Don stressed, grinning.

"Sheesh, impatient much," Charlie grinned. "Hey, Colby, can you pass me that brown box please? Yeah, that one," he confirmed as the agent held up a shoebox and passed it over via Alan. "OK, now, I don't know how many of you know the circumstances behind Amita and my rather… sudden departure, so I'll very quickly explain. Or would you like to, Don?" he asked innocently.

"Never challenge a genius," he said flatly, earning him a withered look from his father and an amused one from his brother. "I told him that he wouldn't know how to be impulsive. They were on the plane the next day." David let out a shout of laughter at that, whilst everyone else laughed appreciatively. "Now, continue. What's in the box?"

"Photos. Lots and lots and lots of photos," Amita said, lifting the lid and bringing out several piles of neatly labelled photographs. Untying the ribbon on the first, she smiled at the image of the two of them, arms around each others shoulders, grinning madly at the camera. Charlie was wearing a Mexican get up and they were both wearing sombreros. In the background, several people were looking at the pair strangely.

"This was before we'd even left," she laughed, handing it around. "We were at the airport…"

**Flashback – June 10th**

Amita sighed in boredom, flicking through the channels restlessly. The first few days of summer break had, as always, been great, with the majority of the student population going out to celebrate the end of another school year. However, almost everyone had gone home, leaving those who couldn't to find their own sources of amusement.

"Amita, you home?" Charlie's voice asked from the other side of the door, and, with a furrowed brow, she made her way over to the door to open it.

"Hey, Charlie, what… whoa!" she yelped, as he grabbed her around the waist and spun her around. Pulling back slightly, she choked on her laughter – Charlie, jeans and t-shirt Charlie, was in full Mexican dress, sombrero and all. Fighting down her laughter at his attire, she raised a hand to her mouth and tried to find the words. "Um – there _is_, of course, a reason why you're dressed like that, right?"

"Yep. Go get packed," he said, grinning madly as he produced another sombrero, placing it on her head and laughing at her shocked expression.

"Packed? Why?" she asked distractedly, waving at her neighbour over Charlie's shoulder, and grinning as the elderly man huffed and closed the door quickly.

"We are going to go travelling," he announced, digging around in his pockets to triumphantly produce two tickets. Amita reached up to take them from him, studying them.

"Mexico? We're going travelling to Mexico?" Amita clarified, still grinning.

"For starters," Charlie admitted. "But that's simply because that was the only flight that was available to any place interesting today." Amita raised her eyebrows and opened her mouth as if to ask more questions, but was cut off when he started pushing her down the hall. "Go, go, I'll explain while you pack!"

"Good!" she said laughingly, as Charlie pulled out her suitcase and opened it. Laughing, she opened her closet and looked inside. "So, is there any reason behind this trip?"

"Don said I should be impulsive once in a while," Charlie grinned, bouncing on her bed. "So I went looked up what flights were available and booked the seats."

"That's hilarious. 'Be impulsive – travel to Mexico!'" Amita laughed. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she recognised the insanity of the situation, but suddenly found herself too caught up in the moment to care. "And what made you so sure I'd be able to come?" she asked teasingly, holding up a white summer dress to her body and raising an eyebrow seeking affirmation.

"Perfect, and because you've been complaining about having nothing to do for the summer for the last month," he explained, snatching the dress from her and folding it quickly into the suitcase.

"OK, I'll give you that," she said, picking out several shirts and chucking them at Charlie. "So what are we going to do in Mexico?"

"Be anyone but us!" Charlie grinned, folding them into the suitcase too. "Then, when we get bored of Mexico, we'll see where the next flight leaves for and get on that."

"Are you serious? Charlie, that's insane!" Amita said, though she still had a massive grin on her face.

"I know! Isn't it fantastic?" he asked, jumping into the air briefly.

"Yes!" she admitted, throwing several more articles of clothing at him, mostly jeans and skirts. "Do I need cold weather clothes?" Charlie thought about that for a few minutes.

"Actually, don't bother packing any more. I'm planning on having fun for a couple of months, at any cost - we'll buy tourist clothes," he said with mock seriousness, doing air quotes around the word tourist and startling a laugh out of Amita.

"Wait, wait!" she said as he went to close the suitcase, grabbing up the entire contents of her underwear draw and shoving them in the suitcase, along with her toiletries bag and anything else that looked relevant. He watched her for a few minutes, suddenly overcome by how beautiful she looked, rushing about with flushed cheeks and a sombrero.

"All right, let me call my roommate, then I'm done," she announced suddenly, pressing the sombrero more firmly onto her head

"Oh, this should be good," Charlie laughed as she dialled the number.

"Anna? Yeah… uh, actually, I wanted to talk to you about that… yeah, listen, can you look after the apartment this summer?... Charlie just showed up with tickets to Mexico…. This afternoon, I think…. Yes, I'm going… Yes, I do… Anna!" she laughed, blushing. "Can you, or can you not, look after the apartment while I'm gone?... Yeah, I'll wire you through the rent from wherever we happen to be…. No, apparently we're just going where the wind takes us…. Yeah, yeah… love you too, chica… see you in a couple of months! I'll call! Bye!" she hung up and turned to Charlie with laughing eyes and a large grin.

"When do we leave?" she asked happily, picking up her suitcase.

"Flight leaves in 3 hours, you got your passport?" he asked, stopping briefly.

"Yep!" she answered, grabbing her laptop as they moved out outside, where a cab was waiting for them. Throwing the suitcase in with Charlie's laptop and bag in the trunk, she clambered in to the backseat with a big smile.

"Thanks for waiting, Justin. To the airport thanks," Charlie grinned.

"Sure thing, Dr. Eppes," Justin smiled, as Amita bounced in her seat, clapping happily.

"You know, 15 minutes ago, I was sitting around feeling sorry for myself, and now I'm on my way to the airport, bound for Mexico. This is madness!" she laughed ecstatically as they pulled away from the curb.

"I know. Want to help me tell Don what we're doing?" he grinned, holding up his mobile.

"Hell yeah!" she laughed, shifting closer as he dialled the number, pressing the speakerphone button.

"Hey Don," they chorused as he answered with his usual "Eppes."

"Hey guys, what's up?" Don asked slowly, not used to such an enthusiastic greeting.

"Well, you know how you told Charlie to be impulsive?" Amita said slyly, grinning at Charlie.

"Yeah…?" Don replied guardedly.

"Well, I'm impulsively on my way to the airport with Amita," Charlie explained, laughing at Amita's exuberance as she giggled at the sudden silence.

"_What_?" Don asked, his voice strangled as the words hit him. "You're _what_?"

"I booked tickets for Mexico last night online. We leave in a couple of hours. Just thought we ought to let you know. Oh, and the best way to contact us would probably be via email. I know for a fact that there are a lot of places without cell reception around," Charlie winked at Amita.

"In Mexico? There aren't that many…" Don started in confusion, still trying to catch up with what was going on.

"Oh, well, we're only staying in Mexico until we get bored," Amita interrupted, enjoying keeping the normally unflappable agent off kilter.

"Bored?" the amazement in Don's voice was almost too much and Amita had to cover her mouth with her forearm to stop her laughter.

"Yes, bored. Then we're going to go the airport and pick a flight to get on," Charlie explained, as Amita buried her face into his shoulder to hide her laughter.

"Are you mad!" Don yelled, and they could hear Meghan in the background, obviously trying to calm him. "You can't just… take off like that!"

"Watch me," Charlie countered, calmly. "I mean, seriously, what is there really binding us here? We've both got two months off work, I've sent emails to all the alphabet groups telling them I can't consult during that time, and I've told dad what's going on. What's the problem?"

Don spluttered, trying to come up with a valid reason, before finally settling on: "But _Mexico_?" Charlie grinned evilly and declared:

"I'll email, Don. Adiós, hermano!"

"Charlie!" Don yelled, but Charlie flipped the phone shut.

"I am going to pay for that at some stage," he informed Amita calmly, turning his mobile off to filter the many angry phone calls he was sure he was going to get from his brother.

"I'm sure you will," she agreed through her laughter, bumping the top of her sombrero against the roof, making her laugh harder as Charlie helped her get it off.

"So, any specific countries or cities you want to visit?" Charlie asked casually.

"I don't know! Oh, Rome and Paris - and India, of course. God, this is insane!" she repeated, smiling widely and launching herself into his arms to give him a hug. "Thank you for doing this," she said happily as she pulled back, kissing his cheek.

"I'd say anytime, but…" he trailed off, giving her a final squeeze before letting go. She sat back, still grinning.

"So, you're going to keep your sombrero on?" she asked innocently, as Justin took the exit that would take them to Los Angeles International Airport. Glancing up, he plastered a look of shock on his face.

"Why not?"

"Because… Well, no real reason, actually. I mean, the other people on the plane might have something to say about your fashion sense, but other than that," she smiled.

"You raise a valid point, but I get to keep the rest of it!" he said, sighing dramatically as he took off the hat. For the next few minutes, they sat, tossing ideas for where they wanted to go back and forth with Charlie's suggestion of Antarctica being the only one shot down immediately, until Justin pulled into the airport. Getting out, he got out their luggage and shook Charlie's hand.

"Have a good trip, Dr. Eppes," he said, as Charlie gave him a $100 note to pay for the fare. "I'll just get your change."

"Don't bother, Justin. Consider it a tip," Charlie grinned as he picked up his stuff and, with a small wave, started into the airport with Amita.

"Dr. Eppes! What did I tell you about leaving tips larger than the fare?" Justin yelled at him, shaking his fist in mock anger as Charlie turned, waving enthusiastically. Amita laughed and jumped up and down as they got to the customs line.

"Hey, you want to stay here whilst I go grab something?" Charlie said suddenly, spotting a duty free shop.

"Sure," she agreed readily, as he swung his laptop onto his shoulder and put his bag down at her feet. "Just don't be long."

"10 minutes, max - and you'll thank me for it later, I promise!" he called over his shoulder. She waved him away, waiting patiently in line as a man several people in front of her kept trying to explain to the customs officers that, yes, he was going to keep setting off the metal alarm, and, no, he wasn't going to use the metal pins in his leg for anything untoward on the plane. Shaking her head, she looked around, scanning the people around her interestedly, until Charlie showed up, grinning madly and holding up a new digital camera and memory chip.

"Oh, nice!" she said, reaching out to examine it as he started spurting numbers and facts about the model, and helping her with the bags as they moved up the line.

"Sir, ma'am?" a customs officer said, and Charlie stopped talking abruptly, turning to smile at the man.

"Yes?"

"Can you place all of your metal possessions in this tray and place your bags on this belt here please?" he asked, eying Charlie's attire warily. Charlie and Amita emptied their pockets, Amita quickly reaching up to unclip her necklace at the last moment, whilst Charlie removed his belt and bells. Placing their laptops, bags and sombreros on the belt, they walked through the metal detector, breathing a silent sight of relief when it didn't go off. Collecting their possessions again, Amita had to laugh as Charlie looked at all the things in his hands before shoving them in his pockets whilst he put on his belt again. Showing the customs officer their passports, they moved off, the metal in Charlie's pockets jingling merrily and making Amita laugh as he tried to find a gait that would least disturb them.

Stopping briefly in the departure lounge, Charlie put batteries into the camera, inserting the memory card as well. Amita, still giggling, sat next to him and watched. Finally, he made a small noise of triumph and held it aloft, before looking around. A man in a smart looking business suit sat a few seats down and Charlie went over, clearing his throat quietly.

"Excuse me, sir. Would you mind taking a photo of my friend and I before we get on the plane?" he asked pleasantly. The man looked up, the look of surprise on his face almost comical, as he stammered his assent to the crazy looking man in front of him.

Grabbing their sombreros and Amita's wrist, Charlie placed the hat on her head and put his arm around her shoulders after making sure his was on firmly as well. She laughed as the business man fumbled with the camera, before finally working it out and saying:

"Say queso!"

"Queso!" the pair chorused, smiling widely as he took the photo. Charlie grinned and strode over

"Thanks for that," he said, shaking the man's hand and taking back the camera. "Have a good trip."

"You too," he said, still eying Charlie's clothes as he walked back to his things.

"Come on, you. We have to get going," Charlie grinned, picking up their luggage and moving off.

"Wait, isn't this the departure lounge?" Amita asked in confusion.

"It's one of them," Charlie agreed, moving towards a smiling stewardess, and showing her their tickets.

"Of course. Enjoy your flight, Dr Eppes, Dr Ramajuan," she said pleasantly, opening the door into the first class lounge.

"You did not!" Amita gasped, hitting him lightly. "First class?"

"I've been spoiled for life by those alphabet groups. They fly me first class everywhere," Charlie explained.

"May I take your luggage, sir, ma'am?" a man asked, coming up to them.

"Yes thank you," Amita smiled, handing over her suitcase, as Charlie did the same with his bag.

"Thank you," Charlie said as the man moved off. "You want something to eat or drink?" he asked her as they moved to one of the couches, their laptops still over their shoulders. She shook her head slightly, smiling tightly. "Hey, what's up?"

"Nothing, it's just… hitting me, I guess. We're actually just about to get on a plane bound for Mexico."

"You OK?" he asked in concern.

"Yes!" she assured him quickly. "Yes, I am, it's just… a bit of a shock, is all." Charlie reached over and grasped her hand in his, smiling at her until she grinned back weakly.

"We are going to have the most fun of our lives," he promised quietly, drawing her into a hug, which she returned after a moment.

"Yes, we are," she agreed, with a smile. "I know we are. Now, what are we going to do when we get to Mexico?"

"So you actually just showed up on her doorstep, told her to get packed and took her to Mexico?" Meghan asked in shock, as Don took the photo from her and grinned.

"Basically," Charlie agreed lightly.

"And you just agreed?" she said turning to Amita, her voice betraying her astonishment at her friend.

"Well, look at it from my perspective – an attractive, intelligent man arrives on your doorstep and offers to whisk you around the world for the next couple of months. What do you do?" Amita asked, with a cheeky grin.

"I see your point. I see it well," Meghan admitted. Don waved the photo at them.

"Where the hell did you get those clothes, buddy?" he asked, laughing. "A Halloween shop?"

"Yes, actually," Charlie admitted sheepishly. "I went and bought it that morning. But, don't worry, I did get changed on the plane."

"That's good, because you'd have been murdered if you hadn't!" Colby chuckled, taking the photo from Don again to study it.

"So, what happened when you got to Mexico?" David asked, holding his hand for the photo.

"Oh, that's when the fun really started!" Amita laughed.

"Do tell!" Anna said, leaning forward eagerly.

"Well…" Charlie started.

**A/N:** Hate to be a cliff hanger writing evil authoress, but I have to sleep before I fall sleep at the computer! I've been studying all day and writing all night! So see ya bai! Enjoy and review if you like it. It gives me incentive. MWA!


	2. When I get there

**Photograph**

**Summary:** After an argument with Don over his lack of impulsiveness, Charlie makes a decision to prove him wrong. And so starts the journey of a lifetime, as documented through a series of photographs. C/A

**Rating:** PG.

**A/N:** Yeah, yeah, stop looking at me like that. I know I should be studying, but after spending 8 hours typing up French notes, I think I am more than entitled to a little relax time…. As evidenced by the fact that I'm getting defensive to my readers, who probably weren't thinking that at all. Sorry, readers. Anyway, I'm not going to ramble on as much as last chapter, and I'll just get on with the story. Do enjoy. And many thanks to my first reviewer, lady-nocturne.

Also, I am fully aware that A) this will never happen on the show, B) both Charlie and Amita seem out of character, C) that everything moves at a hundred miles an hour the whole way through the story, and D) that these reasons are actually the whole point of this story. ENJOY!

**Chapter 2:** _When I get there_

I always said when I get there,  
I'll change the world, I'll take more care,  
I'll touch the sky, be more prepared,  
When I get there_  
-'When I get there' _by Anthony Callea

"Well," Charlie started, reaching around Amita to take the photos from her, sorting through them, passing several around the room. The first couple were of Amita on the beach, arms thrown out in an exaggerated pose and with a cheeky grin on her face as the sun set behind her, throwing a myriad of colours across the sky. Anna looked over Colby's shoulder at them and a slow smile spread over her face at the carefree expression on her room mate's face as the wind whipped her hair around her face. "These were taken the first evening we were there. We pretty much touched down, rented a car, found a town we liked and a hotel that wasn't booked out, and then went straight out. I don't think we even bothered getting changed, did we, babe?" Charlie asked, pulling the next photo out of the pile.

"I must have. I was wearing jeans in this photo," she pointed out, taking the first picture from Don and pointing, "and a skirt in this one, see?"

"Ah, true. Well, anyway, we went down to the beach…" Charlie explained.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Flashback – Saturday, June 3rd **

"Oh my God! Look at that sunset!" Amita exclaimed, hooking her arm through Charlies and grinning madly. "Have you ever seen anything so beautiful?" Unthinkingly, Charlie opened his mouth to reply in the affirmative, watching the way the setting sun made her skin glow, but caught himself quickly. Shaking his head, he smiled:

"It is remarkable." Slipping her hand down, Amita snagged his hand in hers and pulled him towards the beach, almost running down the street. Charlie laughed at her exuberance and let her lead.

"Come on! I want to try the water!"

"Won't you need a swim suit for that?" Charlie asked laughingly as they hit the sand, the sudden change making Amita stumble. Charlie righted her quickly, pulling her to him and steadying her. "You alright?" he asked as she giggled.

"Perfect!" she declared, pulling away but still holding his hand. "Hey, get a photo of the sunset before it sets completely!"

"Well, go on then," he said, motioning that she should get into the frame. Throwing back her hair, she threw open her arms and smiled happily as he took the shots, laughing as her skirt fanned in the wind. For a moment, he stopped just to take in the scene, immensely glad that he'd taken the photo so he could have a record of how beautiful she looked at that moment.

"Hey, Charlie?" she called over the small distance, smiling coyly.

"What?" he called back, slipping the camera back into its case and into his jacket pocket.

"Catch me if you can!" she yelled, turning suddenly and racing down the beach. Wide eyed, Charlie laughed and took off after her, stumbling slightly in the loose sand before moving to the more compacted wet sand near the waters edge, salt water splashing up his legs every few moments as he raced after her. Looking over her shoulder, she shrieked with laughter at how close he'd gotten, before turning quickly and trying to confuse him, only to find that he moved into her way, a wide grin across his face. "Eep!" she yelped, twisting to go back the other way. Charlie reached out and snagged her around the waist, a fact she unfortunately didn't realise as she tried to run, pitching them both forward.

A moment later, still giggling, she pushed herself up to look at Charlie, who was laying face down in the sand a few feet over.

"Charlie?" she asked, through her laughter. Charlie pushed himself up, and spat out a mouthful of sand.

"Hmmm, tastes just like chicken," he declared, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and rolling over so he was facing the sky. Amita shuffled forward so she was next to him and leant over to smile down at him.

"Having fun yet?" she asked, nudging him with her shoulder.

"Bucket loads," Charlie assured her as she rolled onto her back too. "Hey, shift over a bit," he requested suddenly, moving away slightly.

"Why?" she asked, her curiosity piqued.

"Sand angels," he replied solemnly. Her laughter carried down the beach, as she moved over a few metres and started moving her arms and legs to produce the sand angels. They lay there for a while, trying to get their angels as perfect as they could, and chuckling periodically at the childishness of what they were doing.

"Uh, excuse me?" Charlie looked up, startled, to find a couple looking down at them, both looking to be in their late 20's to early 30's.

"Yes?" he replied levelly, using his hand to brush his hair out of his eyes. The man grinned slowly, taking the scene before him in.

"What are you doing?" he asked in an Irish brogue, slipping an arm around the woman's waist.

"Making sand angels," Amita informed them, looking around for something to hold onto. "Charlie, get up and help me out please. I don't want to destroy mine." The young woman chuckled and moved over, offering her a hand. "Thank you," Amita grinned, clasping it and letting her pull her up.

"I hate it when you get it completely perfect, and then you leave behind that one handprint when you're getting up," she agreed, as Amita brushed herself down.

"Exactly!" Amita said with a grin, as the man helped Charlie to his feet. "I'm Amita, and this is Charlie," she said, motioning to Charlie.

"I'm Siobhan, and this here's Bryan," the young woman returned, as they all shook hands. "So what brings you to Mexico this fine day?" Amita let out a shout of laughter, linking her arm with Charlie's again and looking up at him.

"We got bored. Decided to travel the world," she grinned, as they all started up the beach towards the street. Bryan raised his eyebrows.

"Seriously?" he asked, studying them for any signs that they were lying.

"Seriously. Well, actually, my brother told me I couldn't be impulsive, so I booked the tickets last night on a whim to prove him wrong, then thought, hey I don't have work for a few months, and neither does Amita, let's travel the world!" Charlie explained as the street lights flickered to life.

"That's fantastic!" Siobhan laughed, reaching for Bryans hand and drawing closer to him. "Bryan and I are on our honeymoon, _finally_."

"Oh, wow! Congratulations!" Amita grinned. Bryan blushed and looked down at his wife, kissing the crown of her head tenderly.

"We only arrived yesterday," he informed them, a happy grin spreading across his face. They moved along in comfortable silence for a few minutes, until they came to a crossroads, where Bryan slowed to a stop. "So what have you got planned for tonight?" Amita and Charlie exchanged a quick glance.

"See, the bad thing about travelling on a whim is that we actually have no idea what it is we're doing from moment to moment," Charlie explained with a sheepish smile. Bryan laughed, the sound rich and full, and Siobhan's face erupted into a massive grin as she listened.

"Well, why don't you come out with us tonight?" she asked. "Some friends of ours own a club just down the road from here."

"Sounds like a plan to me. I mean, if you're sure," Amita said, cautiously.

"Wouldn't have offered if I wasn't," Siobhan returned. "So it's settled then." The quartet moved down the road, laughing and joking until they came to a bustling club, where Bryan went straight up to a barman.

"Jesson!" he exclaimed, jumping the bar to give him a manly half-hug.

"Bryan, you're here! Mama and Pa were expectin' ya last night," the man replied, his accent a curious mix of the local dialect with traces of Irish. Catching sight of the flame haired woman on the other side of the bar, the man grinned and exclaimed: "Siobhan!"

"Jesson," Siobhan grinned, reaching over to kiss him on the cheek. "Haven't seen you in ages!"

"Way too long, 'bhan, way too long. Sorry we couldn't make it to the wedding," he apologised as Bryan glared at a group of teenagers who were causing a scene, at the other end of the club. Jesson pointed at the group and yelled: "Get off with you." The group scowled and made rude gestures at the much larger man before one of the bouncers turned up, crossing his arms as he spoke to them. A minute later, the group were wandering drunkenly down the road.

Charlie and Amita lingered in the background, unsure of what to do, as Jesson looked over at them and nodded towards them: "These ones with you, I take it?" he said to Bryan.

"Yeah. Jesson, this is Charlie and Amita. We found them on the beach," Bryan grinned, winking as Charlie chuckled appreciatively.

"Make it sound like we're a couple of lost puppies, why don't you, Bryan?" he teased his new friend lightly.

"You mean you're not?" he returned jokingly. "Anyway, we'll talk to you later, Jesson." With another half hug and a few more jokes, Bryan jumped the bar again.

"Tequila shots?" Jesson asked, setting up a tray with a bottle, shot glasses and lemon wedges. Charlie glanced at Amita, who looked slightly stunned, before nudging her lightly. She looked up and shrugged as it to say 'why not?' which he returned with a grin. Bryan balanced the tray easily, picking up a couple of salt shakers and wandering over to one of the many outdoor benches with Siobhan, Charlie and Amita trailing behind him.

"Now, I can't be sure, but I'm guessing you don't do this often," Bryan joked, pouring the shots. Amita nodded as Charlie grinned.

"Don't normally drink, actually," Charlie admitted. Bryan snorted and reached over to hit his shoulder.

"Bah! You're an honorary Irishman now, man. You'll need to overcome that!" he laughed, handing the pair a wedge, a shaker and a shot each. "OK, lick – sip – suck, got it?"

"No," Amita said quickly, drawing a laugh from Siobhan, who moved to her side.

"OK, shake some salt onto your – or your partners – skin, and get the wedge in your other hand," she said wickedly, glancing at Charlie, who was watching attentively. Amita did so, looking slightly apprehensive. "Now, pick up your shot glass, and, quick as you can, lick the salt, slam the tequila shot and suck the lemon, got it?" Amita nodded.

"You too. I'm not doing this alone," she said, nodding at Charlie, who shrugged and did as he was told. "Ready?" she asked, grinning.

"On the count of three – one, two, three," Charlie said, licking the salt off his hand and slamming the drink, fighting not to cough at the burning sensation as he sucked on his lemon wedge, tears in his eyes. Amita coughed and laughed, blinking furiously.

"Damn it!" she managed, giggling. "That's awful!" Bryan grinned, looking over at his wife.

"I do so love breaking in the new ones," he grinned, pounding Charlie's back as he put down his glass and wiped away the involuntary tears. "Trust me, by the third one, you don't care."

"The third one?" Amita questioned, wide-eyed. "You've got to be kidding!"

"Nope! Ah, just stay in one temperature zone, OK?" Siobhan offered, pouring one for herself and raising it to her lips. "What's that saying, Bryan?"

"One tequila, two tequila, three tequila, floor," Bryan chanted, slamming his first shot easily. Charlie gaped, knowing the burn all too well.

"You are mad," he declared calmly, taking a lemon wedge and sucking on it to rid himself of the taste. Siobhan took it from him, shaking a finger at him, and laughed as Bryan poured another round.

"Come on, Charlie boy!" Bryan offered, handing it over. Siobhan handed Amita another, then leant over to sprinkle salt on Bryan's forearm, licking it lingeringly before slamming back the shot and sucking on the wedge.

"Hey, Charlie boy, hand me over the camera. I want to get a shot of you guys while you're still standing," Bryan said, grinning. "You too 'Bhan." Siobhan smiled and moved over to the other pair as her husband fiddled with the camera. "OK, ready?" The trio grinned, raising their glasses in a laughing salute, as the flash went off, temporarily blinding them.

"Lemme see!" Siobhan smiled, moving over to Bryans side and grinning at the camera.

"Come on, Charlie boy," Amita grinned cheekily. "Ready for another one?" Charlie laughed, sprinkling salt on his hand and steeling himself for the burn.

"I was born ready. You?" he asked Amita, who licked her wrist before sprinkling the salt over the area.

"As I'll ever be," Amita laughed, raising her glass in silent salute and performing the ritual with newfound ease at the same time as Charlie. A moment later, they placed them back, laughing. "Oh god, the worst part is that that actually wasn't too bad!" Amita crowed, as Bryan licked salt off his wife's neck.

"I know! You are going so red," Charlie grinned, reaching over to touch Amita's cheek.

"Oh yeah, like you can talk. Just call you the tomato, right?" she teased. Looking over at their new friends, who were already lost in each others eyes, Charlie grinned and reached for Amita's hand.

"We'll be back," he called over the music. Bryan waved at him dismissively and Charlie chuckled, pulling Amita onto the dance floor, where the music pulsed to a steady beat. Amita laughed as he spun her around before dipping her low to the floor, clutching him close as he righted her.

"Oh God, my head's spinning!" she yelled over the music. She felt the rumble of his laughter as they moved to the music. They danced together for a while, until Siobhan joined them, breaking them apart slightly so she could join them as Bryan watched from the table, countering their motions for him to join them by pointing at the table and shrugging. Charlie broke away for a few minutes to buy a couple of shots, laughing as Amita downed hers and went cross-eyed for a moment, before pulling him back onto the dance floor, ignoring the several handsome men who were fighting to catch her attention. Siobhan, laughing, pulled away from the pair, pointing at her husband and making a sad face. Amita rolled her eyes and shook her head before grinning. Several hours later, panting and slightly sore, they finally made their way back over to the table, where the tequila had gone down dramatically.

"Woo! Those were some moves, girl!" Siobhan yelled as Amita grabbed the bottle and poured two shots, offering one to Charlie, who took it easily.

"What can I say, I'm a party girl at heart!" Amita called back, as Charlie sprinkled salt on his forearm in preparation. Grinning cheekily, she snatched up a wedge before snagging his hand and darting her tongue out to lick the salt off, before slamming her shot and sucking on the lemon, grinning at Charlie's shell shocked expression.

"That was my damn salt, Amita!" he finally laughed as she poured another shot.

"Your salt's better than my salt," she offered, shaking some onto the inside of her wrist and reaching for a wedge. In that moment of inattention, Charlie snagged her hand and licked her wrist, and bringing his shot to his lips, downed it easily before snatching the wedge out of her hand and biting into it.

"I beg to differ," he said into her ear as he stepped behind her to throw the peel into a bin. "Your salt's bloody brilliant."

"Charlie!" she laughed, amazed that he'd actually taken her up on the challenge as he sat down, pulling her against him so they could still talk without screaming to be heard. "Hey, you should call your dad, it'll only be ten back home now," she reminded him as she poured another shot and downed it, trying not to look at Siobhan and Bryan, who were kissing passionately.

"It's like looking into the sun, isn't it?" he said into her ear, nodding at the couple. She laughed and nodded, as he whipped out his phone and dialled the number, pulling her outside with him before she could pour another drink.

"Eppes residence, Alan speaking," Alan said, his voice crackly and faint.

"Hey dad! It's Charlie!" Charlie yelled, plugging his other ear with his hand and still moving away from the music.

"Charlie? Where are you?" Alan said loudly, as they finally moved out of range of the loudest music, and onto the beach.

"A town called Mazatlan on the Mexican coast," Amita offered, laughing as she spun under Charlie's free arm, her head still spinning from a combination of the alcohol, the dancing and the sudden, overwhelming happiness that flooded through her as they walked down the beach. "It's pretty!"

"I'm sure it is," Alan said bemusedly. "When did you arrive?"

"I don't know - a few hours ago? We met a honeymooning couple from Ireland, and they introduced Amita to Tequila and now I can't get her to stop," he said teasingly, as Amita poked out her tongue.

"Don't listen to a word he says, Mr. Eppes. It's all lies," she called into the phone, as Charlie sat down on the sand and grinned up at her. She flopped down next to him, giggling.

"Well, you sound like you're having fun," Alan said slowly, as Amita tried to snatch the phone from Charlie.

"Bad Amita," he laughed, snatching her hand and linking their fingers to stop her. "We are, dad. I think we'll stay here for at least another couple of days before heading back to Mexico City."

"When do you think you'll be home, then?" Alan asked, half hoping that their little adventure had tempered the sudden need to travel the world.

"God, not for a good while yet," Charlie said, as Amita leant into his side. "Hey, listen, don't freak if you don't hear from us often, OK? We'll probably be in touch every fortnight or so, but other than that don't be expecting too much. All right, dad?"

"Ah, sure. Oh, and you should know that your brother's fit to be tied after your little disappearing act," Alan informed him. Amita laughed, remembering the phone call from earlier that day.

"Yeah, well," Charlie said sheepishly, grinning down at Amita.

"Charlie, Amita, where'd you go?" Bryan's voice carried over the wind and Charlie covered the mouthpiece to call back:

"Over here, Bryan!" before uncovering the mouthpiece. "Got to go, dad. Love you – send my love to Don, too, would you? Bye!"

"Bye, Mr. Eppes!" Amita added, before Charlie closed the phone, looking up as Bryan and Siobhan approached, swinging their clasped hands between them.

"Hey, where'd you go? We looked up and you weren't at the table or on the dance floor," Siobhan chastised, flopping down next to Amita and pulling Bryan with her.

"Sorry, we decided to make a call home. Let my dad know we got here all right, and all that," Charlie said. "We decided not to disturb you," he added, grinning wickedly. Bryan laughed, and Siobhan blushed.

"Bah, away with you!" she growled playfully. Settling back into the sand dune, the quartet looked up into the night sky.

"So, how long have you two known each other?" Bryan asked a few minutes later, after everyone was settled.

"What is it now? Two, three years?" Amita asked, looking over at Charlie, who shrugged.

"Something like that," he demurred, until she nudged him.

"Come on, genius, I want a number," she teased, making him roll his eyes.

"856 days, 19 hours and" he brought his watch to his face, squinting, "43 minutes. Please don't make me do seconds." Siobhan laughed.

"You know how many days you've known each other for? That's so cute!" she giggled, not noticing the small smiles exchanged by the other two. "What do you do for a living?"

"Uh, we both go to the California Institute of Science," Charlie said vaguely, startling a laugh out of Amita.

"What?" Bryan asked, a smile forming across his face at Amita's amusement.

"It's just that I've never heard it put quite like that before," she laughed as Charlie groaned, burying his face into her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Charlie. I promise I won't laugh in the next country. You just startled me," she explained, realising suddenly why he didn't want everyone to know what they did for a living.

"I'm a Professor of Applied Mathematics and Amita's a research assistant in the Physics department," Charlie explained in a monotone, as the other pair gaped in shock. Finally, Bryan let out a low whistle.

"So you really _go_ to this place, huh?" he teased, before turning serious: "But, seriously, how old are you, man?"

"Twenty-eight," Amita announced proudly. "He's been a fully tenured professor since he was twenty."

"Amita, shut up!" he groaned, covering her mouth with his hand.

"Wow, that's… that's really cool," Siobhan announced, though her shock was evident. Shaking her head, she grinned cheekily. "I mean, I would never have guessed we were in the presence of greatness."

"Bah! No! This is why I'm telling everyone I go to CalSci!" Charlie pouted, making Amita grin.

"No pouting allowed," she told him, squeezing his hand. "What about you guys – what do you do?" she asked, turning the attention back onto the other pair.

"I'm a farmer, actually. Siobhan works in town at the vet's 3 days a week, and helps out on the farm the other days," Bryan said proudly, reaching over to give his wife a brief kiss.

"Nice," Charlie grinned. "How long have you known each other for?"

"Lord, since childhood. We played together as young'uns, went to school together, were childhood sweethearts, the whole deal," Siobhan laughed. "We're so stereotypical, it's terrifying. Been living together for almost 10 years now," They laughed at the tone of mock disgust in her voice. "So how long have you guys been together?" she asked, amazed at the sudden silence from her new friends.

"Uh, actually, we're just good friends," Amita stammered, suddenly awkward. Bryan laughed, and Siobhan smiled, only to have it fade at the look on their faces.

"Seriously?" she asked, looking between the two, nudging her husband to stop his chortling. Catching a glimpse of the pair, Bryan sobered immediately.

"You can't be serious. You can't," he accused.

"Well, apparently we can," Charlie shrugged, suddenly acutely aware of Amita's hand in his. Bryan sat up, looking at the two in amazement.

"Are yer both daft?" he asked, forgetting manners in the face of his shock. Charlie tried for a joke to diffuse the situation, grinning weakly;

"I thought we just covered this?"

"No, Charlie. You're both mad, both of you! Jaysus, to let what you two have go is… is madness – pure and utter madness. Most people spend their whole lives looking for what you two have right in front of you!" he said, half-angry at them. Siobhan put her hand on his arm to calm him, as Amita inched towards Charlie and away from the irate Irishman. Bryan shrugged off his wife's hand and Siobhan narrowed her eyes dangerously.

"Bryan O'Leary, you will stop this nonsense this very moment!" Siobhan snapped, her accent suddenly much broader in her anger, as Charlie put a protective arm around Amita's waist. "T'aint none of our business what they chose, so you calm yoursel' down!" The words had the desired effect as Bryan visibly deflated and sighed.

"I'm sorry, Charlie, Amita. It's just difficult. See, my sister and her best friend have much the same relationship as yourselves, but she still goes off and hooks up with the worst kind of men, when there's someone waiting to treat her like a princess, just in front of her if only she'd care to look. It's difficult for those around you, to watch this," he explained, drawing weak smiles from the pair. "I just don't want you too look back 10 years from now and wish you'd not been so blind."

"Thank you, for your concern, Bryan, but we're big enough and ugly enough to make our own decisions, hey?" Charlie said, still wary as Amita stayed close. Noticing Amita's position for the first time, Bryan sighed.

"I didn't mean to frighten you, lass," he said softly, reaching out a hand to lay it on Amita's shoulder.

"I know. I'm just… not so good with anger, that's all," she offered with a small, weak smile. Giving her one final squeeze, Charlie pulled away and got up.

"Come on, you," he said, pulling to her to feet and placing a steadying hand on the small of her back. "Jet lag and tequila don't mix too well, do they?"

"No," she agreed readily, swaying slightly unsteadily. Siobhan got up as well, to hug Amita, and whisper in her ear:

"I am so sorry, honey." Amita returned the embrace.

"I know. It's fine, don't stress," she offered, pulling back. "Will we see you tomorrow?" Siobhan grinned gratefully at the offering of the proverbial olive branch.

"I'd like that. Why don't we go into the markets?"

"That sounds good," Charlie agreed as Bryan got up, brushing himself down.

"Where are you guys staying?" he asked as they all moved up the beach again. Pointing, Charlie chuckled.

"Up there about 200m. The only place that had any vacancies at 6 o'clock this evening," he said by way of explanation as Amita and Siobhan walked ahead with linked arms, both of them swaying uneasily as they laughed. Bryan nodded as they moved up the street slowly, his hands shoved in his pockets as far as could go.

"Listen, mate…" he started, turning to Charlie, who waved a hand in dismissal.

"It's fine, really, Bryan. We get it a lot. See, I was her thesis advisor - that's how we met - so for the first 2 years we knew each other, it was a forbidden fruit. Now she's trying to establish herself in the world of mathematics, so being with me would cast doubts on her true abilities – I mean, who knows if I'm not helping her along? One of the cons of being a genius, I'm afraid," he said smiling wryly. "My dad, and mentor, and brother, and workmates… well, basically everyone, have been hinting that we should get together, but it's just too hard right now. Maybe later, but I refuse to put her reputation on the line, not when she's worked so hard."

Bryan stopped in the street, looking at Charlie in awe. "What?" the young professor asked, self consciously.

"Nothing, mate. It's just – I mean, wow. I love Siobhan, couldn't live without her, but I wouldn't be strong enough to let her go like that because it was best for her. I really, seriously could not," he admitted, looking ahead, where the girls had linked hands and were spinning around, laughing hard.

"That just goes to show how much you love her, though," Charlie argued, as they started walking again, waving at Amita as she sat down abruptly in the middle of the street, looking dazed.

"So does what you're doing. Sacrificing your happiness so her hard work can be noticed without any doubts? That's love too, Charlie," Bryan informed him as Charlie scuffed his shoes along the ground in a nervous gesture. He shrugged, smiling as Amita waved back enthusiastically as Siobhan helped her to her feet laughingly. "But I do understand. I guess I should have tried to find out all the facts before going off on a tangent, right?"

"There's no such thing as too much data," Charlie agreed with a smile, grateful that much of the numbing power of the alcohol was wearing off. A few moments later, they came to a stop in front of the hotel, and Amita exchanged details with Siobhan. "So, we'll meet midday? Go have lunch and then go off to the markets?" Charlie asked Bryan, reaching out his hand to shake the older man's.

"Sounds good. We'll give you a call to figure out a meeting place," Bryan said, taking the offered hand in a firm grip as Siobhan gave Amita another hug and moved to her husbands side. "See you tomorrow!"

"Yeah, see you then," Charlie agreed waving as they moved away, as Amita used his other arm to steady herself, before letting themselves into the hotel.

"Buena tarde, Sr. y señora," the man behind the counter said with a smile.

"Buena tarde," Charlie returned with a small smile, as they moved to the lift.

"I am never drinking tequila again," Amita informed him, putting a hand to her forehead. He chuckled as she braced herself against the side of the lift as it jerked and started moving upwards.

"That's possibly a good, if somewhat unpractical, idea," he grinned as they got to their floor. Guiding her into the hall, Charlie laughed at her expression as she finally sobered up enough to realize how bad her mouth tasted. "I know. I'll find our toothbrushes as soon as we're in," he laughed.

"How much of that stuff did I drink?" she asked.

"Five shots, maybe six," Charlie grinned.

"And why are you so sober?" she asked, leaning against the wall as Charlie opened the door.

"Because I stopped trying to match you drink for drink?" he offered, motioning for her to go in before him.

"Smart move," she grinned, flopping onto one of the single beds and groaning. "I possibly shouldn't have just dived into the drinking scene like that."

"Possibly," Charlie agreed, sorting through his bag and coming up with a toothbrush and toothpaste with a soft sound of triumph. "If you get dressed now while I'm brushing my teeth, I'll do the same when you're in there, OK Amita?" Silence greeted him "Amita?" he asked again, turning around to find her sleeping peacefully. Fighting the urge to laugh, he went over and pulled down the blankets on the other bed, before lifting a sleeping Amita into his arms and placing her gently between the sheets. She stirred as he pulled up the blankets, murmuring "Night, Charlie," under her breath as she drifted back into sleep.

"Night, Amita," he replied softly, brushing a lock of hair from her face.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Amita blushed furiously, flicking Charlie's hand where it encircled her waist.

"You had to tell them about that, didn't you?" she said, as he grinned and kissed her neck.

"Sorry, love," he apologized, winking at Don behind her back.

"No, you're not," she grumbled, sifting through the pile of photos. "Hey, did I tell you I found those shots that Bryan took that night? Bastard," she added, almost as an afterthought as she examined the pictures, tilting her head to one side. "I look…"

"Completely happy?" Alan offered fondly, leaning over her shoulder.

"No! Like I'm high on something," she countered, drawing a laugh from Meghan as she plucked the first of the photos from her friends hand.

"Aww, how can you say that? Look at them, Larry!" she said, pointing at the shot of the Charlie dipping Amita close to the ground, as she laughed ecstatically. Rolling her eyes, Amita handed over the rest of the photos. They showed Amita, Charlie and Siobhan raising their shot glasses in a toast; the trio dancing, with Charlie sandwiched between the girls, looking at a complete loss and turning panicked eyes to his new friend; Charlie sitting on a stool with Amita pressed against his front, looking over her shoulder at him and laughing at something he'd just said; and finally, the four of them, sitting at the table with their arms around each others shoulders, having asked a fellow partygoer to take the photo.

"You do look more at ease than I have seen in quite a while, Amita," Larry agreed, with a serious expression, before cocking his head and looking at the pair, "except, of course, for right now."

"And this was the first night?" David asked, examining the first photo as it made its way to him.

"Yep. When those photos were taken, we'd only been in Mexico for five or six hours," Charlie grinned, as Amita started flipping through the next ones, surreptitiously slipping two out of the bundle and into his hand. Casually, he brought them around to look, a sudden smile blooming over his face.

"What's that?" Don asked, straining to catch a glimpse. Charlie quickly pulled them out of his reach, placing them in his shirt pocket.

"Those are personal," Charlie grinned. Don and David exchanged a quick glance that didn't go unnoticed by the couple.

"Not that, you perverts!" Amita accused, pointing at them both and glaring. "Just – private, that's all. Anyway, we woke up the next morning, _alone and in separate beds_," she stressed, before grinning and continuing…

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Sunday, June 4th **

Charlie woke with a start to the strains of Beethoven's 8th Symphony drifting up from his discarded clothes on the floor. Throwing his arm out, he pulled them towards him and sorted through them, looking for his cell.

"Make it stop!" Amita groaned, pulling the blankets over her head, as Charlie found it and flipped it open:

"Hello?" he asked, flopping back onto the bed.

"Hey buddy," Don said, his voice sounding far away.

"Hey, what's up?" Charlie asked, throwing a sandal at Amita who was huddled under her blankets. She growled and poked her head out from under the covers to ask:

"What?" Pointing to the cell, Charlie grinned and mouthed:

"It's Don." Amita smiled and stretched.

"Just thought I'd check up on you. Dad said you got off the phone pretty quick last night," Don said, making Charlie roll his eyes.

"Yeah, some friends were calling us. Speaking of which, what time is it?"

"Nine o'clock," Don offered.

"So that's… eleven our time. Ok, well in which case, I'm going to have to leave you, big brother," Charlie said, swinging his legs out the side of his bed and hoisting himself to his feet. "We're meeting up with them in an hour, and we still have to shower, dress and go exchange some of our money."

"Oh. All right – are you having fun?" Don asked, sounding slightly put off by the quick dismissal.

"Well, I am. I think Amita's regretting getting stuck into that alcohol last night, though," he said, grinning at his friend evilly as she squinted against the light streaming in from the window.

"Shut up, Eppes," she grumbled, getting out of her bed to grab up some clothes and her toiletries bag, before disappearing into the bathroom.

"Amita got drunk?" Don asked in shock.

"Well… yeah," Charlie admitted, with a small laugh. "We went out last night and Bryan and Siobhan introduced us to tequila. It was a bit of fun, we ended up dancing most of the night."

"Ok, just keep an eye on her, hey? Neither of you are really used to that scene," Don warned.

"Both of them, as often as I can spare them," Charlie assured his older brother as the shower turned on. "Anyway, I really have to get going, Don. Send our love to everyone, would you?"

"Of course," Don said. "Bye."

"Bye," Charlie grinned, flipping the phone shut and throwing it on the bed. Picking up his bag, he rummaged around until he found a button down shirt and jeans, as well as his toiletries and placed them on the bed next to him, before reaching over to pick up the phone on the table between the two beds and dialling 111.

"Bueno mañana. ¿Cómo poder yo ayudar usted?"

"Uh… I don't suppose you speak English?"

"Good morning, sir. How may I help you?" the man on the other end of the phone asked in a heavily accented voice.

"I was wondering where I should go to exchange some American dollars into pesos," Charlie asked.

"This hotel can exchange up to 500 American dollars into pesos, sir. How much were you wanting to exchange?"

"Probably about $400," Charlie said, flipping open his wallet and checking how much cash he had on him.

"Very good. If you come to the counter, we can assist you. Is there anything else, sir?" the man asked pleasantly.

"No, thank you. You've been very helpful," Charlie said warmly.

"I hope your day is good, sir," he replied before hanging up.

"Who was that?" Amita asked from the doorway, towelling her hair dry. Charlie looked up, and found his mouth suddenly dry.

"Um, a clerk from the hotel. We don't have to go to a bank to convert to pesos – they can do it here," Charlie informed her, trying desperately not to look at her, standing there with a towel wrapped around her and not much else.

"Oh, good. You want the shower?" she asked, moving to her bed and throwing her clothes onto the rumpled covers.

"Yeah," Charlie remembered, grabbing his things and walking quickly to the bathroom, closing the door behind him with a sigh of relief. "Jeez, what are you trying to do, kill me?" he whispered, letting out a deep breath before moving to the sink and bringing out his shaving kit. 20 minutes later, he came into the room, still drying his hair.

"Hey," she smiled, looking much more alert than earlier.

"Hey. Sleep well?" he asked, hanging his towel up next to hers and throwing his clothes into his bag.

"Like a log," Amita admitted sheepishly. "I can't believe I fell asleep without even getting changed!"

Charlie chuckled at her amazement. "You ready to go down?"

"Almost," she said, reaching around to clip her necklace, and scowling as it kept slipping out of her grasp.

"Here," Charlie offered, holding out his hands for the chain, which she handed over with a grateful smile. Turning around, she swept her hair out of the way and he brought his hands around her shoulders to exchange of end of the necklace to his other hand, carefully clipping it at the base of her neck. She shivered suddenly as he brought his hands away and he furrowed his brow. "You cold?" he asked in concern, noting the warmth of the room.

"No. Goose walked over my grave, is all," she admitted with a smile, rubbing her arms to rid herself of the goose bumps. "Ok, I'm ready," she said, grabbing up her wallet and grinning.

"OK, on we go then!" Charlie said, returning her smile easily and leading her to the door with a hand on the small of her back. Half an hour later found the pair strolling along the beach, Amita's arm linked through Charlie's as they chattered easily, their conversation punctuated by laughter at regular intervals.

"Charlie boy!" a familiar voice called out and they turned with a smile to find Bryan up at the road, waving at them enthusiastically whilst Siobhan jumped up and down to get their attention. Raising a hand, Charlie waved back and they turned to head up to the road, continuing their conversation on the mathematics of sediment movement on the beach (_A/N: we did that in class the other day, actually. Interesting as hell - scary that I understood it, though. Anyway, moving on…_) until Siobhan ran full tilt at them, throwing herself at Amita to hug her fiercely. Pulling back finally, she grinned widely at Amita's look of shock.

"Hey guys!" she chirped, reaching out to hug Charlie, albeit for a much shorter period.

"Don't mind her. Maria's been intravenously feeding her caffeine all morning," Bryan said by way of explanation as Siobhan released Charlie, only to hug Amita again.

"Siobhan, seriously, air!" she finally gasped, motioning to her rapidly reddening face.

"Oops!" the Irishwoman said sheepishly, stepping back to allow Amita to take a much needed breath of air.

"Thanks," she laughed. Siobhan merely grinned, holding her new friends hand between both of hers and jumping up and down in excitement. Charlie looked over at Bryan.

"Did you guys discover some long forgotten link between their families last night? Were they perhaps twins, separated at birth, by forces that wished to keep the world a safer place?" he asked dryly, as laughter bubbled from Amita's lips at Siobhan's antics.

"No," Bryan said, with a small grin. "But I think she likes her. Siobhan doesn't make friends very easy, but when she does, watch out. Nine out of ten you'll be invited for Christmas." Charlie shook his head, chuckling as the pair took in the scene the two women made, one dark and exotic, the other pale and red-haired, acting like long lost sisters. "You'll never be free of us now, I'm afraid."

"I can think of worse fates than finding life-long friends on a holiday, Bryan," Charlie offered with a small smile as they started to move along the street, looking over their shoulders to check that the girls weren't so wrapped up in their excitement that they didn't notice. A few moments later, though, smiling happily, the pair squeezed between the men, Amita holding hands with Siobhan and linking her free arm through Charlie's as Bryan slipped an arm around his wife's waist.

"Where to for lunch?" Amita asked, looking around at everyone.

"There's a street of restaurants about a kilometre away if you don't mind the walk. Right near the markets, too," Siobhan said, seemingly more subdued now she was near her new friends. "Maria told me that most of the places are relatively cheap, with some decent local food. Sound good to you guys?" The other three exchanged glances and shrugged.

"Sounds great - Lead on, milady," Charlie said, motioning ahead in a gesture of exaggerated chivalry, which was returned by an easy curtesy and inclination of her head as she skipped ahead, keeping a firm hold of Amita's hand. Bryan watched, his brow crinkling in something akin to concern.

"What's up?" Charlie asked casually, slowing his pace to increase the distance between them and the girls slightly.

"Don't get me wrong, Charlie – Amita's a lovely young woman, and you seem like a good guy too, but I don't think I've seen Siobhan this attached to anyone she's just met since… well, ever. It's kind of frightening how quickly they've bonded," Bryan said quietly with an intonation of worry to his voice.

"Don't worry. She's got it in her head that she's going to try to get us together - happens all the time. She's just excited," Charlie explained with a shrug. Bryan tilted his head, as though studying the women and sighed.

"You're right," he said decisively, laughing self depreciatingly at his worry, before looking over at his new friend. "I can get her to stop, if you want?"

"Don't bother. It's always interesting to see what ideas people come up with to get us together," Charlie admitted. "My personal favourite was when our workmate Larry 'accidentally' locked us in the stationary cupboard, left to get the janitor and didn't return for 5 hours. Pulled the absent minded professor card, said he got distracted by a student and forgot that he'd locked his two closest friends in a cupboard on the other side of the campus. Although I must say, my father's strategy of asking her to dinner every night for 3 months was _inspired_." Bryan laughed loudly at the sarcasm that all but dripped from Charlie's voice, causing the girls to look back at them, intrigued. Bryan waved them off with a chuckle, turning back to look at his friend.

"So, who's in on the act?" he asked with a grin.

"My dad, my brother, my brother's workmates, the rest of the FBI, my Calculus class, Larry, Amita's friends, Amita's classmates, Amita's classes, the dude at the local video store, the woman at the deli down the road from CalSci, CalSci…" Charlie rattled off, furrowing his brow before shrugging, "the rest of LA, basically. We once had a pastor approach us in the park one day and ask if we would 'kindly be the first couple he wed'."

"Ha!" the Irishman laughed, "so even the Catholic Church in on the act?"

"Might have worked, too, if Amita wasn't a Hindu and I wasn't a Jew," Charlie said with a quirked grin. Bryan shook his head as they made a turn to head into the town. "I mean, in the beginning, it was awkward, but as time went on and we got comfortable enough with each other, it became something of a running joke."

"I can honestly say that I can't grasp what it must be like for you, mate. Wanting to be with her, knowing that this could be it, and not being able to act on those feelings. It must hurt," he said quietly, as both pairs of dark eyes followed the girls progress down the street.

"Just a little more each day," Charlie replied just as quietly, forcing a smile as he glanced over at him. "Our time's coming, though." Bryan reached over and clasped a hand at the back at Charlie's neck companionably, squeezing gently.

"That it is, Charlie boy," he agreed quietly, ruffling the younger man's hair as he let go. Charlie smiled, half embarrassed by the gesture.

"What are you boys talking about?" Amita asked, as the girls walked up, swinging their clasped hands between them.

"This and that," Bryan said quickly, as his wife let go of Amita's hand to embrace her husband, murmuring into his shoulder with lips curled up into a smile. Amita grinned, looking over at Charlie, who offered her his hand without thinking. Taking it, she used it to pull herself closer, hugging him tightly.

"Are you having fun yet?" she asked into his shoulder, resting her head on his chest for a few moments.

"Bucket loads," he assured her with a grin as he rested his chin on the crown of her head. "You?"

"Most I've had in… ever, actually," she admitted, her voice partially muffled by his shirt. He chuckled and pulled back slightly, pushing a stray lock of hair behind her ear as she smiled. "Looking forward to some authentic Mexican cuisine?" she asked, stepping away and grasping his hand, just as the other couple started moving forward as well.

"Looking forward to eating it, still a little apprehensive about how little I'll be looking forward to it at ten o'clock tonight," Charlie admitted, making her chuckle.

"I'll grab the ingredients for my grandmothers' tea while we're out. That should calm your stomach down if it does play up," she offered as they moved along, chattering companionably. After a while, though, she slowed, putting more space between the two pairs.

"What's up?" Charlie asked, noting with a small smile the way she had done exactly what he had with Bryan just 10 minutes earlier.

"You should know that Siobhan is…" she started, looking slightly apprehensive.

"Another member of the fan club?" Charlie guessed, pulling her closer. "I figured. Bryan offered to get her to stop – if you like, I can take him up on it." Amita smiled in relief.

"Only if you want – personally, I think this could be another favourite. She's mad as a hatter," she admitted, wrapping her arms around his middle as they walked. "It'll be interesting to see what she comes up with."

"It is always fun when they don't have sanity to contend with, as well as everything else," Charlie laughed, slipping his arm around her shoulders to pull her closer. They all walked in silence, Bryan and Siobhan a few metres ahead of Charlie and Amita as they lead them to a bustling street of restaurants.

Almost an hour later, Bryan groaned and stretched out his arms, placing an arm around his wife's shoulders as he brought them back down.

"Well, at least we'll never have to eat again… ever," he grimaced, rubbing his stomach with his free hand. Charlie laughed quietly, as Amita put her fork to the side of her dessert plate and smiled.

"Weaklings," she accused laughingly, as Siobhan tucked into her husbands abandoned dessert, a large slice of chocolate sheet cake.

"OK, not all of us can have hollow legs, girls," Charlie grinned, speaking slowly as if to a small child. As one, Siobhan and Amita poked out their tongues, as the latter reached for Charlie's caramel crepes and eying them happily.

"Oh, come on! You can't be serious!" Bryan said, wide-eyed as she started to cut them up. "Both of you have had the same meals as us, and we couldn't finish our own damn desserts!"

"Well, you got to admit, theirs are some amazing metabolisms," Charlie admitted, his voice betraying his awe as he watched the two small women put away their second desserts.

"Amen to that," Bryan said wryly. "So, when are you guys thinking about heading off, and where to?" Charlie and Amita shared a brief glance.

"Day after tomorrow, maybe?" Amita offered slowly, before taking another bite of the crepes.

"And somewhere in North America, probably - Costa Rica, maybe Jamaica, I don't think either of us has really thought about it much. Too hectic to pause to think," he admitted, reaching out with his discarded fork to snag a piece of his crepes, only to have his hand slapped away. "Excuse me, I ordered the damn things!" he laughed indignantly.

"You gave them up. By rights, they're mine now," Amita explained, spearing and finishing the crepes just as Siobhan pushed away her own empty plate. "I think Costa Rica, if we can. It always seemed like a really interesting place to visit. It's got the rapids, and canopy walks and everything." Charlie nodded, stacking the now empty plates on top of each other automatically and smiling at the waiter who came to remove them.

"Sounds like as much of a plan as we can get," he said, slipping the right amount for the meal into the cheque folder and waving off Bryans attempt to pay for some of it.

"Fine, but we're paying next time," he grumbled, as he helped his wife out of her chair and they started walking out of the restaurant, Charlie and Amita right behind them, Charlie mouthing:

"No you're not" and making Amita laugh. Bryan spun around, glaring at his newfound friends' innocent expression.

"Yes, we are," he said sternly, making Charlie laugh at the accuracy of his guess.

"Come on. We have markets to explore. You guys got your camera?" Siobhan asked, as Amita reached into her handbag and pulled out the camera. "Trust me, you'll need it. The markets are… amazing – you will never in your life see anything like them." Exchanging a look with his friend, Charlie shrugged, as they walked over a few streets, turning suddenly into an alternate universe.

Amita's jaw dropped and Charlie stopped mid-step as they reached the markets. For almost a kilometre, the streets lined with vendors calling for buyer's attention, as tourists and locals mingled in the street, parting easily as trucks and cars would come down the street periodically. Bryan roared with laughter at the expression on their faces as Amita automatically reached for Charlie's hand, paling somewhat, even as he took hold of it and squeezed.

"We're going to die," she announced calmly, looking over at him. "We are going to be trampled by the masses and die."

"No, we aren't. It'll be fine, it's no different from the markets at home," Charlie soothed, pulling her closer as she flinched away from a chicken that had fled from an angry looking Mexicans stall, and hauling her out of the way as said angry Mexican came out of the crowd, cursing in Spanish and wielding a cleaver. She looked over at him with a scowl, and he forced a grin. "_Slightly_ different from the markets at home," he amended sheepishly.

"Come on Amita! It'll be fun," Siobhan offered with a grin, as Amita turned a disbelieving stare at her as a nearby vendor yelled in poor English:

"Chickens sale, fresh killed!" Amita backed up, only to find Siobhan and Charlie's arms around her waist, pushing her forward even as she shook her head emphatically.

"I won't leave your side, I promise," Charlie assured her quietly.

"You'd better bloody well not!" she hissed back, flinching as a bird tied to a nearby stall squawked loudly and flapped its wings energetically.

"Forgive me for prying and all, but aren't you from India? With the several million people per square kilometre?" Bryan asked slowly.

"Born and raised in California, actually," she said, startling out of the way as a man jumped out at her, holding a piece of cheese that smelled remarkably similar to old socks and looking her up and down. "My parents are back in India for a while with my grandmother to visit my cousin who just recently got married, but I've only been there once," the last word jumped almost an octave as a smiling young man grinned at her lecherously and moved towards her, and she growled, "Ok, that's it!"

A moment later, she stepped in front of Charlie and grabbed his arms, wrapping them around her waist. "For the rest of this day, your arms stay there or I'm leaving!" she announced, and Charlie for the first time felt her trembling as she fought against the urge to get out of the markets.

"But…" Bryan started, silenced by a glance from the younger man.

"OK, Amita, if it'll make you feel better, that's exactly where my arms will stay," he soothed.

"Good," she said in a small voice.

"So it's settled then. OK, Chamita, onwards!" Siobhan announced, pointing and skipping forward. The other pair stayed where they were, gaping at her.

"Did she seriously just combine our names?" Charlie asked, closing his eyes and sighing.

"Well, it saves time," Amita admitted with a laugh, finally relaxing slightly as she noticed the guys that had been eying her earlier back off as Bryan glared at them and they saw her with Charlie. "Come on, Charlie." With that, they started moving forward, laughing as they stumbled on until they finally managed to get into a rhythm, drawing stares that ranged from amusement to flat out shock.

"Oh, Amita, look at this top!" Siobhan gasped, reaching over to hold it up to her friend. Bryan and Charlie exchanged amused glances as they listened to the girls chatter.

Several hours later, they stumbled into Bryan and Siobhan's hotel, laughing harder than they could ever remember. Wiping tears of laughter from his eyes, Bryan tripped on the edges of his serape, fumbling with the several packages he held in his arms until he managed to right himself. Charlie, being careful of his own serape and the various bags he held, looked over at Amita as she clutched Siobhan's hand and tried to calm her breathing, bursting into periodical giggles. The red overtop that Siobhan had brought for her at the markets accentuated her already rosy cheeks, and he had to force himself to look away from the picture she offered.

"That was hilarious!" Siobhan yelled laughingly. "Do it again, do it again!" she urged.

" Je suis désolé, mademoiselle. Je ne comprends pas ce que vous dites. Je ne parle pas anglais ou espagnol. Pouvez-vous parler français ?" Charlie repeated obligingly, plastering an apologetic expression on his face.

"I cannot believe you managed to get out of that," Bryan laughed, as the clerk watched them cross the foyer. He gestured that Charlie and Amita were with them, pointing with one finger at the pair then at himself. The clerk nodded and forced a smile.

"Oh come on, that woman was absolutely not going to back off!" Charlie exclaimed in self defense.

"Well, that is very true," Amita said, having finally gotten her breath back. "Did you see the look on her face after?"

"Damn after, did you see the look on her face _before_?" Bryan grinned, before pointing at Charlie, "you were about to lose clothing, my friend!"

Charlie gave an exaggerated shudder, trying not to smile as he remembered the look of fury that had crossed Amita's face as the young woman sidled up to him and started flirting unashamedly, throwing a contemptuous look over her shoulder at Siobhan and Amita. Inspired by the way that Siobhan muttered mutinously under her breath in Celtic, Charlie had put on the most apologetic face he could and, silently thanking the NSA and their insistence that he become at least bilingual if he were to keep consulting for them, had said softly in French:

"I'm sorry, miss. I don't understand what you're saying. I don't speak English or Spanish. Can you speak French?" The look of disappointment and frustration on the young woman's face only increased when Amita, calling on years of high school French, had stepped up to him and leant into his side and said:

"Avez-vous toute la raison, amour?" With what looked to be a genuinely friendly smile, she had turned to the other woman and said apologetically: "Je suis désolé, aussi, mais nous devons aller. Bonsoir !" Charlie had taken her hand, waving to the pouting woman and calling out cheerily:

"J'espère que je ne vous revois jamais !" Amita had buried her face into his shoulder at that, for all appearances a woman trying to stay as close to her lover as possible, as she hid her laughter as best she could.

"What was that?" Siobhan had asked as soon as they were out of earshot. Charlie turned abruptly and pulled Amita into a firm embrace, picking her up off the ground and murmuring:

"Merci, merci, merci!" into her hair as Amita laughed, grateful that he hadn't even looked like accepting what the attractive woman was obviously offering.

"Tell me!" Siobhan had squealed, stamping her foot childishly.

"'J'espère que je ne vous revois jamais'? not nice !" Amita asked Charlie, grinning and ignoring Siobhan's pout. Siobhan huffed and crossed her arms across her chest and Amita rolled her eyes: "Roughly translated it means I hope I never see you again."

"Well, I panicked, _amour_," Charlie had stressed, explaining what had happened to the other couple quickly. Bryan had blinked a few times, taken a few deep breaths, and started to laugh, the sound reverberating down the street and triggering a chain reaction until all of them were laughing so hard they were attracting stares and amused glances from people in the street, until they had finally reached the hotel, where they currently found themselves.

Bryan, finally regaining his faculties, announced:

"I'm going to head upstairs, have a shower, get dressed and then meet you at the restaurant, how's that?"

"Sounds good," Charlie said. "Can I use your bathroom, though?"

"Of course, come on up. We'll meet you there in a while," Bryan told the girls. Siobhan reached up to kiss her husband and Amita smiled at Charlie, before they turned and started into the house restaurant, where they'd agreed to do for dinner that night. Watching them go, both men cocked their head to the side as one and Bryan whistled low: "We are lucky sons of bitches, Charlie boy," before clapping his friend on the shoulder and heading over to the lift.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"That was a fun night!" Amita laughed, sifting through the pile to bring out several photos. Alan looked over her shoulder at one and suddenly choked on his laughter.

"Is that…" he asked, making a movement with his hand to encompass the photo.

"Karaoke on the beach," Charlie agreed, handing his father several photos, depicting different combinations of the friends standing on the platform that had been set up. "We went for a walk after dinner and stumbled across it, so we thought we'd stay for a while. We stayed for a bit longer than a while," he said sheepishly, as Alan examined one of the photos, one that showed Bryan on his knees, singing up to a blushing Siobhan as her microphone dangled by her side, and Alan held it up for everyone to see.

"He was singing a ballad called That's all," Amita offered, "it was their wedding song. He's actually a really good singer, isn't he babe?" Charlie nodded emphatically, as Alan handed the first on and examined the second. Amita and Siobhan were singing, arms around each others waists and turned to face each other, smiling gently whilst couples swayed in the foreground.

"In the arms of the Angel," Charlie said, smiling proudly, though his eyes betrayed a hint of sadness. "They did good." Amita smiled sadly in remembrance, closing her eyes and resting against his chest.

"What's up?" Colby asked, seeing the sudden change in their demeanours.

"It was Siobhan's choice," Charlie explained. "It was played at her father's funeral a month before their wedding. She didn't tell us the significance until after, but it meant a lot that she'd include us in that." Colby made an 'oh' with his mouth and grinned tightly. "Anyway, moving on," Charlie said, squeezing Amita around the middle as Alan handed over another photo of Amita standing alone of the stage, her eyes dipped and a small smile playing on her face as she looked down towards her friends.

"Leeann Rimes," Amita smiled in response to everyone's questioning gazes, blushing suddenly, "I need you." Sudden smiles blossomed over Meghan and Anna's faces, as they launched themselves at the photo, snatching it from a shocked David and scanning it quickly with their eyes, before looking up at Amita, who smiled shyly in response.

"There are times - they are few, they are far between - but there _are_ times I wish I could just once understand the secret language chicks seem to have," Colby announced quietly to David, who chuckled and nodded emphatically as Charlie widened his eyes and nodded subtly, mouthing:

'You get used to it.' Seeming to sense that something was going on, the girls turned to look at them, their eyes narrowing. "Anyway," Charlie said quickly to get the focus off the situation, "next photo." Alan, looking at his youngest son strangely, handed the photo to Amita so she could tell the story.

"Oh, look!" she grinned evilly, showing it to Charlie and laughing at the look on his face.

"You said you didn't get that one processed!" he said, trying to snatch it from her, as his face drained of colour. "Don't you do it, Amita!" She grinned and handed it over to Don, as Charlie groaned.

"You sang?" Don asked in shock, examining the photo.

"Yes, don't make a big deal out of it," Charlie warned, pouting.

"What'd you sing?" his brother asked, still trying to process the sight of his little brother singing. What's more, from the look on everyone's faces, he was good - _Really_ good.

"It doesn't matter," Charlie insisted, panic in his eyes.

"Like hell it doesn't," David grinned, hauling himself to his feet to look at the photo.

"Come on, Charles. It cannot possibly be as bad as you believe," Larry coaxed, hiding a grin at the glare he received.

"Yes, it can," the young professor contradicted his mentor.

"Come on, babe, it was good! I don't know why you're so embarrassed about it. Is this about that record guy?" Amita asked, suddenly stern.

"Gee, what do you think?" Charlie grumbled, before sighing and mumbling: "In your arms at the end of the world."

"Oh my God, I love that song!" Anna squealed, jumping up and down at the same time as Colby and Don asked:

"Record guy?"

"There was a record producer that followed us around for the rest of the night trying to convince Charlie to come to the studio the next day to do a demo," Amita grinned, as Charlie groaned louder.

"Which part of 'can we keep this quiet when we get home' are you having issues with, again?" he asked, resting his forehead against her back.

"Oh, stop it. I'm allowed to be proud of you, you know!" she pointed out, linking her fingers with his.

"You serious? I didn't even know you could sing, buddy," Don said, shocked, as Alan gaped.

"I can, I just don't," Charlie said, a faint note of pleading to his tone. "Now can we get over it and onto the rest of the trip, please?"

"NO!" everyone else yelled.

"Listen, it's no big deal. He followed us around for a while, until I told him in no uncertain terms that I didn't want to do it," he growled, "and now I just want to forget about it!"

"Why? It's not anything to be ashamed of, you know," Anna said, suddenly having a new appreciation for her friend's boyfriend.

"Do you have any idea how insufferable Bryan was the next day?" Charlie asked. "I'm a bloody math professor, not a pop idol!"

"OK, babe, we'll move on," Amita said, rolling her eyes. "Seriously, you'll never change his opinion on this – I spent a long time trying to get him to be proud of it and he looked at me like I'd lost my mind and refused to talk," she offered to the others as she reached for another photo. Bryan and Charlie were facing each other on the stage, grinning broadly as they mock glared at each other. Charlie finally lost his pout, as a slow smile spread over his face.

"Oh, what's this?"

"Anything you can do, I can do better," Charlie sang loudly with a broad grin, taking care not to sound too decent, as Amita started giggling, "I can do anything better than you."

"No you can't," David offered.

"Yes I can!" Charlie sang loudly, pretending to glare.

"No you can't!" Colby added, through his laughter.

"Yes I can! Yes I can, yes I can, yes I can!" Amita and Charlie sang loudly, as laughter rippled through the room. Finally, Amita took a deep breath, still grinning broadly.

"It was hilarious! They stood up there for almost five minutes singing this stupid song, and doing all these stupid things to test the other!" she grinned, shaking her head at the memory.

"Like?" Alan asked, examining the photo and grinning at the laughter that lingered on both handsome faces.

"Bryan started it by pulling Siobhan onto the stage and dancing with her, so Charlie grabbed me and did the same. Better, though," she added quickly at his scandalized look. "Then Charlie continued it by running at the back of the stage and running up the damn wall to do a back flip, which almost killed Bryan – you should have seen the look on his face! He did it though," she conceded.

"Then the bastard got mean," Charlie grinned.

"He started to break dance!" Amita laughed, bringing a hand to her mouth to compose herself before bringing it down, still grinning. "By this time, of course, Siobhan and I were absolutely useless. We had to sit down before we fell down and hurt ourselves."

"I didn't back down, though!" Charlie announced proudly. Colby let out a shout of laughter rubbing his eyes with his palms and shaking his head. "Yes, that's right, people. I can never go back to Mexico for fear of someone recognizing me!" Looking over, he saw Don leaning over, his head braced in his hands as his shoulders shook with the force of his laughter, as Meghan buried her face in Larry's chest and tried to get her breath back. Anna was giggling and gasping for air, her hands wrapped around her middle as her muscles seized in protest.

"Then, everything went to hell. Charlie started reciting the numbers of pi, and Bryan began to explain how to fix an auger, whilst the other sang the bloody song. I thought we were going to have to take Siobhan to the hospital – she started going blue because she couldn't breathe through her laughter," Amita gasped through her own. "Then one of the guys in the audience got onstage, and did an entire gymnastics routine. Bryan and Charlie took one look at each other and started singing 'He can do anything, anything better, he can do anything better than us!' By the time they were done, I don't think there was a single person who wasn't laughing their heads off. I think that got the loudest applause of the night! Well, other than…"

"Ack! No, we do not speak of it!" Charlie said, placing a hand over her mouth to stop her from continuing. Don chuckled and shook his head. "Anyway, I think we got in about, what, five in the morning?" he asked, grinning.

"Quarter past, I think. Then we were up at eight to get on the boat with Bryan and Siobhan to go snorkelling. That was one of my favourite things we did actually," she said, with a bright grin. "It was amazing! We went up to the Las Tres Islas, which is a few miles off the coast, and spent all day."

"Three islands, one coral reef, thousands of fish and other animals, and two shipwrecks – at least, two that we found. There's supposed to be over eighty in the area," Charlie explained, pulling out his laptop and booting it up, before clicking on a few folders and motioning for everyone to gather around. "We only got these off Bryan a few weeks ago, so we haven't had the time to get them printed yet, but they're still spectacular," he apologised as everyone got up to get a view of the laptop screen. Clicking on slideshow, he leant back, letting everyone see.

"OK, that was Siobhan being an idiot," Amita said by way of explanation as a shot of the Irishwoman dangling from one foot from the boat came up. Everyone laughed appreciatively, as the picture faded into a spectacular view of the islands came up on the screen, then several others of the four on the boat, the wind wreaking havoc on the girls hair as they laughed.

"I like that one," Alan said, nodding at one that had the four perched on the side of the boat, smiling happily. Bryan and Charlie had their arms around Siobhan and Amita's shoulders to clasp each others wrists companionably whilst the girls held each others hand, Siobhan keeping a gentle hand on her husbands thigh and Amita winding her free arm around Charlie's waist. "I'd like a copy of that one at some point please."

"Me too," Don said, as it faded into one with the Siobhan reaching up to kiss her husband, as Charlie and Amita looked at each other, smiling and oblivious to the world around them.

"Yeah, that wasn't Siobhan being an idiot. She lost her balance and took Bryan with her into the water - That was fun to explain to the captain!" Charlie grinned as it faded to one with two pairs of flailing feet going over the edge, Charlie reaching past Amita to try to stop their descent and Amita half standing, her mouth open to call out to someone for help. "They have a copy of this photo on the sill above their fireplace – Bryan thinks it best describes the time they had on their honeymoon!"

The photo faded into one of Bryan and Amita dancing around in a circle with two pieces of driftwood on a white, sandy beach, having a mock swordfight. A moment later, the screen changed to one where Charlie and Bryan had a laughing Siobhan by the arms and legs, swinging her between them as they waded into the water, and another where she was flying through the air over the ocean as they let her go. Everyone laughed as the next one came up, of a soaking wet Siobhan chasing the pair with her husbands abandoned driftwood sword in her hand. As the photo faded into the next, Ana inhaled sharply as a picture of the coral reef came into focus, followed by others that showed various fish and marine wildlife.

"This is incredible, guys!" Colby said in awe, as a photo of Amita and Siobhan swimming towards a shipwreck came into focus.

"It was an amazing day," Charlie said with a quirked grin as another came up, showing the girls sitting on the edge of the shipwreck carefully, apparently deep in conversation, their air pieces temporarily removed for the photo. "The things that we saw down there… like that!" he said, pointing as a photo of a pair of dolphins nudging Bryan with their noses came up.

"That was just… awe inspiring. This is one of my favourite pictures of the whole trip," Amita admitted, as everyone gasped and pulled closer, "I'm so glad that you had the presence of mind to get out the camera." Several others came up of Bryan and the dolphins, including one of him being pulled along by one after he grasped its dorsel fin to see what it felt like and it had startled forward. For the next five minutes, they looked at photos from snorkelling, with photos ranging from coral to a shoal of brightly coloured fish parting as Amita swam through them.

"We began to run out of air after two hours or so, so we headed back up to the beach," Charlie said as the scene changed to Bryan, Amita and Siobhan waving at the camera as they lounged on a blanket, a picnic basket and the remains of lunch spread out between them. Bryan had changed into his shorts and a shirt, but the girls had opted to just put on a sarong each and pull their hair back. Charlie grinned at the scene until it changed to Bryan chasing Siobhan down the beach, as she shrieked with laughter.

"She pinched his dessert," Amita explained, grinning.

"That will do it," Alan agreed as David nodded with a small smile. The photo changed again, showing Amita and Siobhan racing side by side towards them on the beach. Charlie groaned, as the next one showed Amita face down in the sand as Siobhan continued forward.

"Never take an Irishwoman up on a challenge," Charlie said. "A simple 'get to know each other better' conversation somehow turned into 'truth or dare', which somehow turned into 'bet you can't beat me', which quickly took a turn right into 'if you can't beat me, then I get to give you a dare to do'. Just, never take an Irishwoman up on a challenge. So we spent most of the afternoon dancing, which we won, climbing trees, which they won, and racing, which they won. Do the math."

"I tripped. It was the last damn challenge, and I tripped," Amita explained laughingly.

"So?" David asked apprehensively.

"So, Siobhan the insane got to chose a dare for us to do," Charlie said with a small grin, shaking his head in disbelief.

"On no, that does not sound good," Anna said unnecessarily.

"Well…" Charlie grinned, as Amita threw an amused look over her shoulder. "It certainly could have been worse…"

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Flashback - Monday, June 5th**

Amita looked over the edge. "And we _are_ completely sure there's nothing down there to kill us, right?" she confirmed, as Charlie walked right up to the edge and looked over.

"Every local I talked to said it was safe," Charlie confirmed, suddenly regretting their sudden decision to take Siobhan up on the dare. "We don't need to do this, you know. Say the word and I'll talk to Bryan." Amita shrugged, grinning suddenly.

"Why, scared?" she asked. Charlie gaped, as Bryan flinched back from the drop off.

"Guys?" he asked in a small voice.

"No!" Charlie replied to Amita's joking accusation indignantly. "I just thought you might be."

"Guys?" the Irishman tried again, raising his voice a little.

"Me? I am scared of nothing and no one," Amita said, spinning around.

"I am!" Bryan declared loudly, his voice higher in his panic. The other pair turned suddenly, watching as Bryan grasped the branch of a nearby tree as though it would keep him from falling, wide eyed and pale.

"You alright, mate?" Charlie asked in concern.

"I hate heights," he rasped, his face pale. Siobhan moved forward to stand between him and the drop off.

"Oh babe!" she said wide-eyed. "I can't believe I forgot! I'm sorry, guys. We'll head down a little more slowly, but you go on ahead," she encouraged with a shaky smile, rubbing her husbands back. For a moment, Charlie looked apprehensive until Bryan looked up to meet his eyes, his embarrassment glaringly evident.

"OK," Charlie said quietly, knowing how he hated to appear weak in front of friends and that the older man was probably the same.

"Leave your clothes here. We'll take them down to the beach for you to get when you get out all right?" Siobhan offered, as Charlie pulled off his shirt, not noticing the way Amita hesitated as she watched him. "Amita?" Siobhan grinned.

"Yeah, yeah, keep your shirt on," Amita threw over her shoulder, starting to undo her sarong.

"Don't have one on, sorry!" her friend joked back as Charlie threw his clothes at Bryan, who was trying desperately not to look at Amita, knowing he'd be in all kinds of trouble if he did, both with his friend and with his wife. A moment later, Amita did the same, and Siobhan caught them with practised ease. "We're heading down, now. Don't jump for a few minutes, I want to watch!" Charlie opened his mouth to make a comment on her choice of words, but quickly closed it again.

"You know, I just can't do it. It's just too easy," he told Amita, who laughed before seeming to realise that they were both standing there semi-naked, her bathing suit suddenly seeming very small. Gulping, she looked away, a blush creeping across her face. For a few minutes, the pair stood there, Charlie whistling under his breath, and looking up at the clouds, fighting the urge to ramble about how cloud formation was directly related to a theory he was working on.

"Well, are you going to jump or not?" Siobhan's voice drifted up faintly from the beach. They laughed as the tension that had been building dissipated quickly.

"Come on then, let's not keep the crazy lady waiting," Charlie grinned, taking several steps back.

"I can't believe we're doing this," Amita offered as she walked back with him.

"We did say we'd do whatever she came up with if we lost, and we did lose," Charlie admitted. "So, ready?"

"Ha! Hell no!" she laughed, shaking herself out as though preparing for a boxing match. "Ok. I'm ready."

"Good. Remember, run and jump, and try and stay as streamlined as possible," he reminded her. "See you at the bottom!" With that, he let out a yell and she grinned, racing towards the edge, beside him but not close enough to land too close when they got to the water. Upon reaching the edge, she screamed as she forced herself to jump, her arms flailing as she fell until she saw Charlie move his arms close to his body and keep his legs closed. Quickly, she copied him, and moments later, she felt water wash over her as she hit the surface, her feet stinging from the impact. After what seemed a lifetime, but was in reality just a few moments, she slowed and was able to start her ascent to the surface, panicking slightly as she felt a stinging pain in her side.

Charlie, meanwhile, came to the surface, laughing and throwing his wet hair out of his eyes. "That was fantastic!" he yelled, looking around. "Amita? AMITA!" he yelled, sudden fear swelling in his chest as he realised she hadn't surfaced. Cursing the sun that glinted off the surface of the water, blinding him to where she was, he immediately calculated where she would have landed and looked around to get his bearings before diving for her. From behind him, there was a splash and gasp.

"_Charlie_!" the terror in her voice made him spin around in the water, wild eyes seeking her out. A moment later, he saw her waving one of her arms, and heard the ragged sound of her trying to get enough air. With speed borne of fear, he powered through the water, covering the metres between them in mere seconds.

"I couldn't move!" she sobbed, as he reached her, wrapping his arms around her waist and supporting her weight as she pressed her hands to her side. Supporting her weight easily with one arm, he brushed her hands out of the way and attempted to find an injury, closing his eyes in relief as he found her skin smooth to the touch and uninjured. Pulling her close, he rested his head on her shoulder as she shook.

"You're alright, Amita," he soothed as she took several, gasping breaths, moving her hands to his shoulders as she clung to him. "I've got you. I'm right here, and I'm not going to let anything happen to you. It's just a stitch, love, it's just a stitch," he continued gently, as her breathing finally began to regulate. "It's just a stitch," he repeated, his voice shaky as the reality of what could have happened if she hadn't been able to get to the surface began to settle in. Nodding, she pulled him closer, both the fear and the pain abating. For several minutes, the pair stayed there, Charlie treading water to keep them about the surface as she regained her confidence.

"You're my best friend, Charlie. Do you know that?" she asked quietly, causing him to look at her sharply.

"Yeah, of course I do," he returned quietly, hoping for some expansion on the comment and being sadly disappointed. "Want to tell me what brought that on?"

"Sometimes I just… worry that you don't know how much I care about you, how much your friendship means to me," she admitted, her voice trembling.

"What did Siobhan say to you?" Charlie asked, suddenly worried.

"No! Nothing like that, it's all right. I just, bah, I'm just being stupid. I'm just… being stupid," she repeated, though he noticed her arms tightening around him even more, shivering at the sensation of the water surrounding them.

"Tell me," he said gently, his arms supporting her entire weight as she automatically leant back into them, surveying him.

"Why are you always here for me?" she asked suddenly, placing her arms on his shoulders. Charlie frowned at the sudden change in topic.

"Because I care about you?" he tried, his brow furrowing in confusion.

"And why do you always know the right thing to say when I get freaked out?" she asked gently, her fingers playing with the hair at the base of his neck, making him shiver.

"Because I know you?" he almost asked, still confused and off kilter from the lingering effects of the fear that had shot through him when she'd yelled out.

"And tell me again why _we_ won't work?" she requested, meeting his shocked gaze with a pleading one of her own as his eyes snapped up in shock. Gaping wordlessly for a few moments, Charlie shook his head.

"I never said that," he said weakly, "never."

"Then why?" she asked beseechingly, her eyes boring into his.

"You've worked so hard, Amita," he said quietly, but intensely, his fingers reflexively tightening on the small of her back. "For your doctorate, for your job, to gain the respect of the rest of the mathematical world – They'll say you cheated. They'll say I gave you more help than was proper. They'll say…"

"I don't care," she cut across him loudly, before dropping her voice to a fierce whisper: "I don't care. Let them think whatever they want. I'm over pretending I don't… I don't have feelings for you. I'm sick of having to make sure I don't stare at you for too long. I don't care anymore! I just want this to work!"

"You said you weren't ready," he said quietly, as she closed her eyes and dropped her head to rest it on his shoulder. "When Penfield…"

"That was a year ago, and I didn't mean a word of it. I was standing there, telling you that, thinking 'Just close your mouth and back out slowly'. I didn't mean it, and as soon as I said it, I hated that I had!"

"I don't know what to do," Charlie admitted quietly, as Amita raised her head to gaze at him. "I've spent so long telling myself that what I've been doing is for the best, I just think…"

"Then stop," she whispered, leaning in and resting her forehead on his. "Just stop thinking, and do what your heart is telling you to do."

"Are you sure about this?" he asked, pulling her close. She nodded quickly. "Because if we do this, we have to be all in, both of us," he continued, his voice shaky, "there's too much at stake to risk this if either of us isn't fully committed to making this work."

Pulling back slightly, Amita's eyes widened and her lips parted slightly in something akin to awe as she gazed at him, her arms resting on his bare shoulders at he looked up at her, fear and love shining in his eyes. Looking at him, as they floated in the Pacific Ocean, she fell completely in love with him.

"I am _all_ in," she whispered, knowing suddenly that this was it.

"You're sure?" he confirmed, even as one trembling hand left her waist to push her wet hair out of her face.

"One hundred percent," she confirmed, lifting her hands to thread them in his hair. "Are you?"

"Yes," he said simply, keeping his eyes on hers as they lent in towards each other. When his mouth was almost on hers, he breathed against them, "I've been all in since I met you." With that, she closed the gap between them, pressing her lips to his fervently, her fingers tightening in his hair reflexively as they lost themselves in the sensations.

Fifty feet away, Bryan, now shirtless after he prepared himself to jump in to help Charlie when he heard his panicked yells for Amita, chuckled and pulled his wife close.

"Come on, love. We'll go down the beach a little, give them some alone time," he said as she hugged him, pursing her lips. He sighed. "Say it."

"I told you so!" she burst out, as he leant down to take the camera from his ecstatic wife and place with their friends neatly folded clothes, checking to ensure there was no one around to take them. Scribbling a note on the back of a receipt, Bryan put it under the camera and walked away, shaking his head and laughing as Siobhan jumped up and down excitedly.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Oh my God!" Meghan squealed, reaching forward to embrace Amita. "That's so romantic!" Charlie rummaged around in the box, pulling out the receipt and grinning at Bryan's familiar handwriting. '_We're just down the beach. Would have taken you with us, but you guys seemed a little caught up. See you this evening for dinner at Maria's – don't miss the last boat!__ p.s. GO CHARLIE BOY!_' Charlie passed it to Don, who laughed.

"I think I'd like this Bryan guy," Don chuckled, handing it to Alan to read.

"I have no doubt," Charlie grinned. "We'll get to find out for sure in about 5 months, though."

"What, why?" Colby asked, reaching out for the slip of paper as Alan smiled and shook his head.

"You know Bryans comment that we'd be invited for Christmas?" Amita asked, taking out several more photos from the pile and handing them around.

"Yeah?" Don said, drawing the word out as he watched them.

"Did you also know that Amita hates the cold with a fiery passion bordering on insanity?" Charlie asked casually, drawing a startled laugh from several people around the room as they examined various photos of the markets. "We invited them here instead, and they accepted."

"Oh. OK then," Don said, slowly. "Uh, you do know that I'll be staying here over the Christmas break, don't you? It doesn't take a genius to do the math on the number of people vs. number of bedrooms available."

"That's alright. Hopefully, we'll have a place of our own by then, so they can stay with us," Charlie said casually, pointing at a box near David and saying: "Can you pass me that box?" David gaped, as Larry dropped the photos in his shock, apologizing profusely to Anna, who happened to be in the firing line of the pictures. She ignored him, her mouth opening and closing several times as he scrambled to pick them up until Meghan placed a hand on his arm and squeezed, the shock on her face almost comical.

"What?" Alan asked, his voice strangled.

"It's called a box, dad, it's…" Charlie offered, knowing exactly what they were all freaking out about.

"A house? Your house? A house that would house both of you?" Don asked, seeking confirmation. Alan grabbed the coffee he'd just brewed, took off the lid and calmly started drinking straight from the carafe. Charlie chuckled.

"Yes, Don," Amita grinned. Charlie again pointed at the box, raising an eyebrow and waiting patiently as some of the shock wore off, and David reached for it, freezing at Amita's next words: "And, hopefully, a few others in the coming years," she continued, a blush gracing her cheeks as Charlie tightened his grasp around her waist. Unfortunately, Alan had chosen that moment to take another draft of the coffee, and, within a few moments, Larry found himself sprayed with the liquid. Charlie took one look at the contrition mixed with surprise on his fathers face, and the shock on Larry's and let out a shout of laughter, covering his mouth to keep more from escaping.

"I… I'm sorry, Larry, but that was… that was too perfect," he managed through his laughter as his mentor glared at him.

"Was that a joke, Charlie?" Meghan, being the first to regain the power of speech, asked.

"What, about the kids?" he asked, looking at her. She nodded slowly. "God no. But you've got to admit, the timing was impeccable," he chuckled as he put his hands on Amita's waist to hoist her up into a standing position. "Come on, Larry. You can have a brief shower while I get you some more clothes to wear. Oh, by the way, the green suitcase wasn't the one with the normal clothes in it," he said, changing conversations seamlessly as he helped Larry to his feet and looked over at Amita.

"No, they're in the black travel case," Amita said, pointing. Making a soft noise of understanding, Charlie moved across the room to pick it up.

"There will be no more telling of story until we're back," he said, coming back over and kissing Amita briefly before moving out of the room with Larry. Amita grinned and leant down to get to the box Charlie had pointed at earlier. Everyone was still staring at her in varying degrees of shock, as she looked up and shrugged.

"He said nothing about not giving out presents," she said, opening the box, as chatter gradually began to swell through the room again. Amita grinned and caught Charlie's eye as he stopped at the base of the stairs to watch the scene before him, mouthing: 'I love you', which was returned as he reached up to touch his shirt pocket subconsciously.

In Charlie's pocket, two photos faced towards his heart. One showed the pair, clad only in their swimsuits, jumping from the cliff with their arms flailing. The second, a close up, showed the pair as they floated in the ocean, Charlie supporting Amita in the water as she gazed down at him, her arms resting on his shoulders and lips parted in something akin to awe.

The second, a close up, showed the moment the pair fell in love, and for the first time let themselves fall.

**A/N:** You know, I've actually started making decisions such as 'Story or sleep'. The saddest part of that being that sleep is only winning about once in every 5 times I think it. Well, I hope you've enjoyed it! Review if you did. Well, I'm actually going to study now – heh, go figure. I am also aware that the dates have changed - I pushed their departure date back by a week to give them more time.

**Note:** A Serape is a wrap that Mexican men wear – similar to a massive shawl, the serape is one of the most popular traditional clothing pieces.

Also, the French text in this chapter reads thus:  
_Je suis désolé, mademoiselle. Je ne comprends pas ce que vous dites. Je ne parle pas anglais ou espagnol. Pouvez-vous parler français ?  
_I'm sorry, miss. I don't understand what you're saying. I don't speak English or Spanish. Do you speak French ?

_Avez-vous toute la raison, amour ? … Je suis désolé, aussi, mais nous devons aller. Bonsoir !  
_Are you all right, love?... I'm sorry, also, but we really must be going. Good evening!

_J'espère que je ne vous revois jamais !  
_I hope I never see you again!

_Merci, merci, merci !  
_Thank you, thank you, thank you!

The songs used in this chapter are:  
-When I get there by Anthony Callea  
-Angel by Sarah McLachlan  
-That's all by Michael Buble  
-I need you by Leeann Rimes  
-In your arms (at the end of the world) by David Campbell  
-Anything you can do, I can do better by Irving Berlin

UP NEXT! Costa Rica! Next week's hectic – final exams, first semester of university - so give me a fortnight to get the next chapter written, hey? THANKYOU FOR READING

Have fun everyone! – Always, coolchick207


	3. AN

**Very Quick Authors Note**

I am so, so sorry. I can't believe how long it's been between postings, but directly after my last mid-term I collapsed and had to be taken to hospital. See the shoddy thing about having a congenital heart problem is that people really freak out when you do that. It was finally put down to exhaustion, but I was in for almost a week having tests, and since then my parents have had me on strict bed rest. So I do have a reason for being a slack authoress.

I will have the next chapter up in the coming weeks, but until I can sit and write for any period of time, I'm afraid I have to ask everyone to be patient. Thanks!

Oh, and many thanks to GothRaven for her wonderful 'Call of Duty' stories (and I know you all know which ones I'm talking about, because I doubt there's a single person who is reading this who doesn't obsessively read and review that story) which kept me sane during my hospitalisation!

_Always, Ana_


End file.
